Mentor Monday: Featuring Nate Cudworth

Welcome to our second Mentor Monday! This week we're highlighting Nate Cudworth, a new Lead Academic Mentor for Math 221. 

                                                                       

Q: Can you please give us a quick introduction of yourself? 

A: My name is Nate Cudworth, and I'm a Nuclear Engineering-Radiation Sciences major. My future goals somehow include a position of leadership in my career field. What that exactly is, I do not know, but I want to lead a group of people to accomplish a worthwhile goal that can help others. 

Q: How did you become involved in Academic Mentoring, and in what capacity are you involved now? 

A: I was searching online for tutoring opportunities through the university and found CAE. I applied and was accepted in the fall of 2014 as an academic mentor. This summer I accepted a position as a lead academic mentor and am currently working with a group of students in Math 221. 

Q: What is your favorite strategy card/activity/game to play to help solidify information in sessions? 

A: My favorite activity to do with my students is a Socratic seminar scenario where I give the students problems to do in small groups. Then, I have them present their work to the group as a whole and explain their thought processes and methods to show their own understanding and allows others to see another point of view on the problem. 

Q: What's your favorite part about CAE, academic mentoring, or being a Lead? 

A: My favorite part of being a lead is the group setting. It follows along with my future goals in wanting to lead a group of people toward a common goal. The exposure now can help a lot later on. 

Q: Do you have any advice for academic mentors or students around midterms? 

A: If I have one piece of advice for students and mentors alike, it's spread out your studying over a week or two so you don't cram the night before and stress yourself out over material that would be better studied in short spurts. 

Q:  What is one way you relax and feel on top of things when assignments, exams and extracurriculars start to pile up? 

A: One way I try to relax and relieve stress is playing basketball at the rec facilities on campus. An hour and a half on the court can do a lot for my physical and mental health during stressful times in the semester. Your brain needs a well-deserved break sometimes. 

Thanks, Nate! Leave any comments below, as well as nominations for upcoming Mentor Mondays. Thanks for reading, everybody! 

Thoughtful Thursday! Suicide Prevention Training - Helping Students in Distress

Being a college student presents many blessings: increased freedom, seemingly endless opportunities, and the ability to define yourself as a person. Unfortunately, this is a double-edged sword, as increased uncertainty and transitions challenge support networks, routines, and well-being.

It is sad to bring this as our first "Thoughtful Thursday", but suicide is the 2nd leading cause of death among college students. In order to combat this, let's arm ourselves with the tools to help students who are in distress for any reason. Fortunately, thanks to an amazing interactive training program by Kognito, 30-45 minutes of your time today could help significantly.

I want to thank UHS and specifically Valerie (Kowis) Donovan, the Suicide Prevention Coordinator, for making this training available for UW students.

When you've completed the short training, without sharing any details about a situation or person, comment on one of the following:

• What surprised you about the training?

• What were a few takeaways to help identify friends who are at-risk?

• What are the ways you learned to have a tough conversation?

• What resources are available on campus for students in distress?

How to access At-Risk for College Students

1. Go to www.kognitocampus.com/login

2. Click “Create a New Account”

3. Use access code: uwmadison

4. Follow on-screen instructions

5. Choose your course

Resources at UW-Madison can be found here: http://resources.kognito.com/highered/LR_UWM.pdf

Questions? Email: suicideprevention@uhs.wisc.edu

More information can be found at: www.uhs.wisc.edu/atrisk

Also, put the UHS number in your phone contacts. 608-265-5600 – option 9 for 24 hour crisis

If you have other topics for "Thoughtful Thursday", please 

send them to caetutoring@saa.ls.wisc.edu

Mentor Monday! Highlighting LAM Whitney Thomas

Welcome to a brand new series on the CAE Academic Mentoring blog: Mentor Mondays! Each Monday, we'll highlight a Lead Academic Mentor, Academic Mentor, student, or mentor-student group. They'll discuss their background with CAE, tutoring tips, and advice for getting through classes, schoolwork, and life in college. 

Our first guest is Whitney Thomas. She's a junior majoring in English who plans to attend Pharmacy School after graduation. She was an Academic Mentor last year with Math 114 and 171, and it is her very first semester as a Lead Academic Mentor working with Math 114. 

Q: What is your favorite activity to use in sessions?
A: My favorite activity that I often utilize in sessions is to have students work in pairs and tell one another (or have students tell me) the steps to the problem that we are working. I feel that this activity really helps students gain confidence in their ability to solve problems through verbalization. I also think this can be beneficial for the individual writing down the steps (being told what to do) because they are also gaining practice thinking through the steps of problems.

Q: What's your favorite part about being a Lead AM?
A: One of my favorite parts about being a Lead Academic Mentor is helping to facilitate an environment that benefits students in a way they are often unable to receive in class. Seeing how students benefit from working with their peers is such a rewarding experience particularly when students help one another better comprehend certain topics. Also, I always love to hear how students grow to enjoy the subject in which they are receiving mentoring by the end of the semester!

Q: Do you have any advice for both Academic Mentors and students? 

A: Some advice I would like to share for both Academic Mentors and students at the start of the semester is to not fall behind! It’s really easy to get behind in your classes at the start of the semester when things aren’t as busy. However, in no time at all the pace and workload will pick up!

However, if you do fall behind and assignments, exams and extracurriculars start to pile up, one way to relax and feel on top of things during such hectic times is to stay organized! My favorite method of staying organized is to make lists. By making lists you are much more likely to complete the various tasks you need to accomplish. I will usually prioritize the different items on my list by putting the most important ones on the top or by color-coding. Plus nothing feels better than crossing something off a list!

Q: Thanks so much, Whitney! Any last comments?
A: Thank you for letting me be a guest on the CAE blog! I hope everyone has a great semester and can use some of the tips I suggested! On Wisconsin! 

Blog readers: If anyone is interested in being featured on the blog, or would like to nominate someone else, please contact caetutoring@saa.ls.wisc.edu or comment below. We would love to hear from you!

Looking for one more credit? Join Biology 375!

Welcome back, Academic Mentors!! 

Are you interested in professional development? Do you have room in your schedule for one more credit this semester? If so, we encourage you to consider taking Biology 375. It is open to all majors, and we believe it could be a very positive influence in your role as an academic mentor with CAE. 

Please read about it below, and ask if you have any questions:

Exploring Discipline Based Leadership and Mentoring – Jerry M. Whitmore, Jr. PhD

Biology 375 lect 007 - class number 76743 - Tuesday 2:25-3:15pm

Biology 375 lect 008 - class number 76744 - Wednesday 2:25-3:15pm

In addition to building practical peer leadership and mentoring skills, this 1-credit course provides a forum for evaluating and reflecting on personal experiences among a group of peers who challenge and learn from each other as they explore leadership. Class activities are designed to develop critical thinking around student development issues and provide strategies for integrating discussions of diversity, ethics, social justice, community, and civic responsibility into leadership experiences.

Jerry M. Whitmore Jr., PhD. | jerry.whitmorejr@wisc.edu

Research Associate | WISCIENCE

HHMI BioScholar PostDoc Fellow

Instructor for BIO 375:  Exploring Discipline Based Leadership and Mentoring


Additional Reminder~ The CAE Kick-off is Thursday, September 10th from 2-5 pm in Bascom B47. Stop by for free food, mingling, lots of information, and fun! 

Writing in French and Spanish

Hi Academic Tutors!

For those of you learning and/or tutoring French or Spanish, you are going to love this one!

There are two free online grammar and spell checkers that are suited perfectly for language learners; BonPatron for French and SpanishChecker for Spanish. They will help you find and correct your own mistakes when writing your papers.

If you need help with French go to: http://bonpatron.com/

If you need help with Spanish go to: http://spanishchecker.com/

This tool is user friendly! You just have to paste or type your text in the text box on the website and click on “Check Text.” Your mistakes will be highlighted with color codes indicating whether the grammar or spelling needs to be modified. If you hoover your mouse over the highlighted errors, brief explanations with examples will appear. It will tell you if you made a mistake on agreement, word choice, punctuation, word form, etc.

What I like the most about this website is that it will NOT correct the mistakes automatically. Instead, it will provide you with feedback that will help you correct your errors while actually learning. Hence, this free tool has actually educational value.

I have used this website to correct my French papers, and I find it extremely helpful. Check it out and let us know what you think!

Happy Friday guys! :) 

Tutor Self-evaluation

Hi Mentors!

Are you unsure if your tutoring is being effective? Here are some guidelines, which in retrospect will help you analyze and evaluate your tutoring techniques. This way you could make changes to your strategies as a mentor to obtain better results!

Don’t just give yourself a grade. Gather your evidence and try to come up with a strategy to improve your sessions.

Self-evaluation checklist:

How well did I .....?	Very Well	Satisfactory	Could Be Better
Prepare for the session
Get the session underway (establish aims, etc)
Ask questions and prompt the tutee
Handle the tutee's comments and questions
Respond to the tutee as an individual
Keep the focus on the main topic
Help sustain tutee interest
Provide help when tutees encountered difficulties
Ensure key points were drawn out
Bring things to a close and set out homework

If after self-evaluating, you determine you have room for improvement, please refer to the previous blog for tips on successful tutoring sessions.

Have a great night!

Credit to First Tutors --United Kingdom--

Tips for successful tutoring sessions

Hi Academic Mentors!

Here are some great tips to accomplish successful tutoring sessions. Even if you have experience, this can be very helpful, check it out!

Tutoring Tips

Below is some general guidance on how to give tutoring sessions, including potential tutee anxieties, and notes on encouraging tutees to contribute in order to ensure your sessions run smoothly.

Encouraging tutees to contribute

Many people can be nervous when learning in a one-on-one environment for the first time. It is critical to be patient with them, and build their confidence through encouragement and praise. Your ultimate goal is to help the tutee become comfortable and confident in the subject, even if they occasionally make mistakes.

Potential tutee anxieties

1. Your tutee may struggle to express exactly what they are looking to gain from lessons, and may doubt their ability to achieve their goals. It is essential to agree on realistic targets based on what they are ultimately hoping to achieve. If a tutee finds it difficult to articulate what they are aiming towards, avoid the kind of 'why' questions that can make someone feel on the spot.
2. Your tutee may feel obliged to defer to you. Your tutee may be a little intimidated: you should try to encourage them to express their opinions to build confidence. One-to-one sessions, whilst very useful because of their intensity may also be a little overwhelming to someone who is not used to being in the spotlight.
3. Your tutee may see you as an assessor. This is a difficult perception to overcome, especially if you're coaching your tutee towards an exam. The key here is to be open, friendly, to encourage the tutee's confidence and to make your style of teaching non-confrontational. Be careful that a tutee does not feel unable to express their lack of confidence in fear of incurring your wrath!
4. Your tutee may be confused as to how to work together with a tutor in a lesson, having never had a one-to-one before. Whilst some people may quickly take the lead and specify what they want from lessons, others will be unsure and will look to you to establish a power dynamic. Here, informal feedback is essential so you are aware if the tutee feels they are not getting what they need.

Encouraging tutees to contribute

Tutees are more likely to engage when:

• They feel comfortable around you
• You show them respect and support, especially when they make mistakes
• Learning is seen as a co-operative exercise, not a confrontational one
• You both agree upon realistic and achievable tasks
• They are encouraged to contribute, not just to be lectured to
• Feedback is frequent so communication breakdowns do not occur
• They are presented with open-ended questions that are not too 'leading'

Directing discussions

Think about:

• Regularly giving supportive, constructive feedback
• Encouraging broader or deeper focus
• Correcting misunderstanding in a non-confrontational way

Feedback on tutees' skills/abilities

• Link feedback to specific positives/mistakes
• Comment on use of particular skills
• Be encouraging and friendly!

Balancing tutor/tutee contributions

• Review how often you intervene
• Balance feedback with space
• Encourage quiet tutees, but don't overpower them

Closing lessons

To determine how your tutee feels the lessons are progressing, ask open ended questions such as these:

• What has been the most significant thing you've learned today?
• Do you have any questions after today's lesson?

If you have any homework for the tutee, spend time discussing how they should tackle it. Remember: the tutee may not have time to do extensive exercises, or indeed may not have the inclination to do so! Homework density must ultimately be decided on their terms.

Not contributing

Avoid spelling out the answer to an unresponsive tutee. Instead, try framing the question in a different way. Give some encouragement: tutees can become disheartened and cease trying if they think their efforts are futile. Re-evaluate the task you are giving to them and make sure it's manageable. 

I hope this helps!

Credit to First Tutors --United Kingdom--