What Should Mazie Do?
Here's what might happen if Mazie sticks to the tutoring lesson she had planned.
- Mazie:
- If you've really caught up, I think we ought to plow ahead with the work we planned for today. Working on homework isn't the best way to utilize tutoring-time.
- John:
- Yeah, I know. But it's due tomorrow.
- Mazie:
- I know. You're stressed. Look, tell me what the missed lecture was about so we can see if you really are caught up. Then, if there's time, we can use some of the homework problems to test your understanding. OK? So, what was the lecture about?
- John:
- Umm...something about equilibrium
- Mazie:
- What about equilibrium? Can you be more specific?
- John:
- I'm not sure.
- Mazie:
- Well, how about reviewing what we went over last time? Tell me what chemical equilibrium is. Give me an example.
Instead of responding to John's request to work with him on his homework, Mazie directs the tutoring session to what she and John agreed to last time. She empathizes with John's distress, but she also recognizes that her goal is to help John learn about chemical equilibrium. Notice...
- Mazie offers to integrate the homework into the tutoring. This way she stays on track and helps lessen John's stress and signals to John that Mazie wants to be supportive.
- Mazie begins the session by finding out what John actually knows. She does not assume that John is caught up (even though he might be). She uses the missed lecture as a way to gauge John's level of knowledge and comprehension, which will tell her where to take the tutoring session.
