Tutela a guiding influence

What a journey we've made since late August! Can it really be so long since classes began? The sturdy fabric of the fall semester always seems to fray at Thanksgiving, and never really pulls itself back together before finals and the winter break. Everyone has too much to do: studying for finals, finishing (or starting!) papers, and all the commitments we make can take a lot out of us. There are preparations for trips home, buying or making gifts for everyone, and for many, that feeling of alienation that comes with being a different person from the one who left home for college in late summer. Each trip home brings its own mix of emotions.

In this issue, we present some thoughts on stress and ways to deal with it, and several pieces on tutors' reactions to workshops. Because the combination of money and this time of year can present particular stress, we've included an article to help you manage both stress and money (and the lack of it) in appropriate ways. (See "Paper or Plastic").

Since our last issue, we've hired many tutors, particularly in those hard-to-fill math and science courses. Several tutors have gone on to other things: one has recently become a father and stopped tutoring to allow for the time and energy having a newborn demands. Two have become Resident Assistants and stopped tutoring to take these much sought-after positions. Another got an unexpected assistantship. So, we take a deep breath, wish them well (and to the new father, we wish a good night's sleep), and renew the search for more good tutors.

At NDIL, we have a remarkable array of backgrounds and interests among our tutors and among the students you serve. Our tutors come from all over the U.S. and many other countries: Iran, China, Japan, India, and England among them. Some tutors have traveled extensively in the U.S. and throughout the world. Many have studied in other parts of the world for a year or more, living and learning in cultures much different from their own. All have special needs, particular interests, and unique hopes for the future. We are a microcosm of the world, and have an opportunity to do good by being who we are, assisting one person at a time. Listening to one another and reaching out in some way can make a tremendous difference in the world around us. History is full of reasons to listen, to reach out, to help where we can.

So, finish your papers, write your exams, and take a well-deserved break! Come back refreshed and renewed, built up to begin again. Your work as a tutor is important. You make a positive difference in the lives of others.

Have a wonderful winter break -- see you in January!

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It's the weather. I have tried to figure out why I haven't been responding to all of the advertised sales, and it must be the weather. Fortunately, I have been too busy to try to get into the spirit. In years past, I would accompany friends or family on shopping sprees. Although I am not a huge fan of malls or shopping in general, I must admit I do get into buying this time of year like many others. I doubt I am alone in this sentiment. With all this in mind, it seemed like a good time to sit down with Monique DiCarlo, the director of the Women's Resource and Action Center. She is the initiator of the "Paper or Plastic?" project on campus.

"Paper or Plastic?Ó is a program that offers support to students with concerns about debt and money management. The idea for this program came out of a similar program offered by WRAC "Women and Money." WRAC serves the community and the campus and Monique felt students could be served better by a program that catered to their specific needs. She met with professionals from several student service units on campus and the "Paper or Plastic?" project was born.

The free service is staffed by financial professionals and is open to all university students. There are two components to the service: prevention and intervention. The prevention aspect offers students skills to protect their credit history. This includes making them aware of aspects of credit that might not be readily apparent. The idea is to give students tools that will help keep them safe while they are at the university and help with financial decisions after student life ends. The intervention component offers help to students who are in trouble with credit or who are feeling anxiety about present debt. The service offers advice on budgeting and dealing with creditors.

As tutors and students we are subject to student life two fold. We must look out for ourselves while being a resource to other students. Anyone can get into trouble with credit issues. The prospect of credit problems can add stress and that is the last thing most of us need. The financial counseling service is an opportunity to get free quality advice and maybe avoid future troubles. Stop in yourself and certainly tell your students about it. Look for more details below.

Monique Dicarlo has been the Director of WRAC for the last seven years She holds a Master's Degree from the University of Michigan and is an adjunct instructor in the School of Social Work.

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Paper or Plastic is sponsored by WRAC, Office of Student Financial Aid, Support Service Programs, Residence Life, Women's Athletics, Cashier's Office, the Alumni Association, Iowa State University Extension-Johnson County and Consumer Credit Counseling Service.

 

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I sat down with Kathleen Leeds to get her reaction to the tutor workshop given by Risa Johnson on personality types. Kathleen is a senior in Classics and Medieval Studies. She tutors French and astronomy for NDIL.

Kathleen Leeds

Kathleen found the presentation interesting and enjoyable. Personality typing seems to be a popular subject. She said, "Although I had never taken a personality inventory, I have friends and family who have talked about what personality they are using the letter indicators. It was nice to find out exactly what they are referring to."

My introduction to personality typing and the letter signifiers is similar to her's. I have a friend who sent me a web link to a site that offers a test to find out what personality type you are. It uses the Myers-Briggs indexing and a brief description of what that might mean. The social popularity coupled with taking a test which produces a combination of letters that combine to make up a personality type give the entire process a game-like feeling. Kathleen intimated, "I didn't feel like the resulting personality really fit me, but I have guessed the types of some of my friends and for the most part I have been correct. This made me wonder about the truth in my self-perception." She felt the workshop didn't explain enough about how this can be used in the tutoring process even though she thinks she will be ableto apply the ideas in everyday life -- probably not in any scientific manner but as a social game of "guess the personality types" of those she encounters. She would have liked more material on the descriptions in the form of a handout so that she could refer back to them from time to time.

A handout is now available upon request at the NDIL office.

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Lord Charles was showing his guest the family portraits. Pointing to one, he remarked: "Brothers and sisters have I none, but that man's father is my father's son." Who was represented in the portrait?

(Answer is below.)

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On November 13, Sandra Cortina, from University Counseling Services, led the final NDIL workshop of the semester. Her session was entitled "Managing the Last Five Weeks of the Semester." This session focused on identifying stress in both students and tutors and techniques for minimizing the effects. Ms. Cortina, a doctoral student in Counseling Psychology, created a relaxed and participatory environment, which allowed all present to share symptoms and personal tools used to deal with stress. A number of handouts were distributed on time management, general stress management, and muscle relaxation. Stress is a common occurrence in student life, and the audience responded with a variety of techniques to reduce it. The value of the workshop was the opportunity to see how others handle stress and learn some methods for reducing or coping with stress.

Handouts are available in the NDIL office upon request.

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I would like to take this moment to announce my conversion. Today I am a mathematician. There, I've said it and shared it with the world. Yesterday I was firmly committed to exploring and struggling with the world of humanities but that's all done. I have to thank Jolie Chrisman for opening my eyes.

Jolie Chrisman

Jolie is a senior from Oak Park, IL, double majoring in math and music performance. She plays the oboe and has tutored math for NDIL since 1998. If you are anything like the old me you might be intrigued by the juxtaposition of math and music. If juxtaposition is part of your working vocabulary then you probably are a little intimidated by the math and science people just as I am so I asked the most logical question I could think of: Why do you enjoy tutoring? I knew that would give me a little more time to figure out the connection.

"I enjoy tutoring because I get to help other's understand math and hopefully enjoy it more." She said this with a genuine smile. "Explaining gives you a chance to reinforce what you already know."

I thought this was a very good answer, which only convinced me more that I should see the connection between music and math. It was with this in mind that I asked: What do you like about working with NDIL? Maybe I should've cut to the chase but I was only ten minutes in and there was plenty of time to figure out the math/music connection on my own.

"I like that there is never a money issue with the NDIL students and I have never had an instance when a student didn't value the tutoring experience. I like the mediation NDIL provides. It allows me to concentrate solely on helping the student with their math."

Jolie always tries to identify the student's individual needs and address specifics through breaking problems into steps. Once a student recognizes how to solve the parts of a problem she guides them through applying those skills to the more complex larger problem. She believes math is sequential in nature. One level builds off another level. A person without a strong foundation or understanding in algebra may experience problems in calculus. She got me when she explained that a struggling student has a weakness in one area of the sequence and that if this can be identified it can be corrected.

"My main goal in tutoring is to share the fun of math and learning in general." She said with another smile.

With this my confidence rose to such a level that I was finally ready to ask the big question. "The connection between music and math? Well there is some connection between rhythms and math but I double because I love both."

Of course! I knew it all along. Now does anyone know where I can pick up an oboe, cheap?

Jolie's recommendations for oboe artists are Mark Weiger, Burt Lucarelli and Alex Klein.

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In each issue of Tutela, we have tried to give tutors a voice. In this effort, we have been asking tutors to provide some feedback on each of the training workshops offered during the semester. We hoped that their reflection would reinforce the value of the workshops and would allow us to provide some information to those who did not attend.

On November 5th, NDIL facilitated a workshop on Tutoring Groups of Students. Following the workshop, I spoke with Michelle Dujka about her impression of the program. She stated that she thought the workshop was helpful. Michelle especially liked receiving handouts on specific strategies to direct discussion back to the group. She is always concerned about what to do when she does not know the answer to a question and appreciates any recommendations for "ways to put control back in their hands." Near the end of the workshop, tutors were asked to simulate a group tutoring session during which the "students" were given role assignments. Michelle thought that it would have been more beneficial to have more simulations during the workshop. She explained that having a simulation at the beginning of the workshop could have provided the tutors a better frame of reference, especially those who had not tutored a group of students. In general, Michelle thought the workshop was a positive experience.

Tutors simulate a group session

Michelle seemed to be appreciative of the opportunity for improving her tutoring through training, having attended several during the fall semester. She expressed that the information in workshops is always useful to her tutoring and often can be used outside of tutoring. She feels that attending workshops, in addition to Tutela and the group emails, connect her to NDIL and other tutors. She tries to take in as much as possible, valuing the interaction as a means to hear other people's viewpoints and experiences.

Next semester, we hope to see many more tutors in attendance at training workshops!

Thank you for your comments, Michelle. -Risa Johnson

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Brain Teaser answer: His son.

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Page last modified December, 2001. Site maintained by University of Iowa Office of Support Service Programs.  Copyright © 2001 The University of Iowa. OSSP site developed by Ray Mescallado.