A learning experience not only for students, but also tutors

As the academic year continues on, the courses that students take don’t get any easier. Many students find keeping up with the material given is difficult. To remedy this predicament, many students visit the De Anza College tutors.
The tutors help with many subjects, ranging from mathematics, writing and reading, world languages and other general subjects such as accounting and economics.
There are many reasons why students decide to become tutors and choose to give up their personal time to help others.
Howon Kim, a computer science major, has been tutoring at the Listening and Speaking Center for a year and a half. He said enjoys tutoring others. Kim said that he tutors others to help them accomplish their goals and knowing his efforts have changed someone’s life positively brings him happiness.
On the opposite side of the tutoring spectrum where the sessions can be inefficient and frustrating, both the tutor and the tutored are victims.
When the students comes to the session unprepared and unwilling, the efficiency of the session is reduced to nearly nothing. “So for one hour we teach them only one problem,” said Minh Chau, a biological science major, who recently started his first quarter of tutoring mathematics, biology, and chemistry. Chau said that when his students come unprepared, they have to waste most of the time by letting the tutee finish their homework.
“In a workshop, I don’t want to waste my time on one person trying to dig out the information or make them speak.” said Tam Nguyen, a nursing and communications major, who has tutored at the Listening and Speaking center for two years.
For students who have a firm grasp over certain subjects of learning, they may be recruited as tutors. John Martin, a Statistics tutor for a year and half, was asked to become a tutor. John said one day a faculty member of the math department noticed his strong understanding of mathematics and recommended he become a tutor.
Though in the beginning John may have had a good grasp of mathematics, there was always room for improvement.
“There are things I picked up in tutoring that I remember never learning in class,” said Martin.
Tutoring sessions encourages both tutors and students to learn.
The hours for the tutoring center are 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Monday through Thursday, and 12:30 p.m. on Fridays.