Alan K, English, Language, Math, and Test Preparation Tutor

I have an M.A. in Journalism from New York University and a B.A. in English and writing from University of Virginia where I was an Echols Scholar. I am a writer and editor with more than 20 years' experience in university, church, technical, and commercial magazine settings. My teaching experience includes GED as well as English as both a second and a foreign language. My current specialties are ACT/SAT test preparation, reading comprehension, writing, math, foreign languages (French, Spanish, Latin) and social studies.

Even more than a wide knowledge and skill base, my strongest asset as a tutor is an ability to meet students where they are and help them set and achieve their personal goals. I appreciate and respect the uniqueness of each student and situation. I believe humor and imagination are as necessary as hard work and commitment to the process of identifying and overcoming obstacles to academic achievement. Establishing a relationship based on trust and respect enables me to help students identify and build on their strengths, thereby decreasing anxiety and increasing confidence.

Please feel free to call if you have questions and/or concerns. I look forward to talking with you.

Alan's Subjects

Math:	ACT Math, algebra 1, algebra 2, calculus, geometry, linear algebra, prealgebra, precalculus, SAT math
Science:	ACT Science, biology, physical science
English:	ACT English, ACT Reading, English, ESL/ESOL, grammar, literature, proofreading, public speaking, reading, SAT reading, SAT writing, TOEFL, vocabulary, writing
Test Preparation:	ACT English, ACT Math, ACT Reading, ACT Science, GMAT, GRE, PSAT, SAT math, SAT reading, SAT writing, TOEFL
Language:	ESL/ESOL, French, Latin, Spanish, TOEFL
History:	geography, government & politics, religion, world history
Special Needs:	phonics
Elementary Education:	elementary math, elementary science, grammar, phonics, reading, spelling, study skills, vocabulary
Business:	GMAT, GRE, public speaking
Corporate Training:	ESL/ESOL, French, GMAT, grammar, Latin, proofreading, public speaking, Spanish
Homeschool:	algebra 1, algebra 2, biology, calculus, English, ESL/ESOL, French, geometry, prealgebra, precalculus, reading, SAT math, SAT reading, Spanish, study skills, writing

Algebra 1

It's not unusual for students who have had no previous problem getting good grades in math to stumble when they hit algebra. Often this is because there are a few of the foundational skills that they never really internalized, so they've found work-arounds that take a while but get them the answer. Working to strengthen those skills usually helps a lot. There are several other conceptual issues that sometimes trip students up until the right explanation makes sense to them--working with negative... Read More

French

I was fortunate to have an excellent French teacher in high school and a sister taking the same level of French at another school, so we learned it together as a way of speaking that our parents couldn't understand. For many students, there are several obstacles to learning French. First, leaving the gravitational field of English for the first time is extremely hard, especially when they don't really understand how English works. Second, they are ashamed to "make a fool of themselves" in classes... Read More

Geometry

Some students find geometry makes perfect sense--you can just look at it. For others, it seems totally arbitrary. For the latter, I try to show them why it is that things are as they are. Once these start to add together to make sense, they build on each other. I work very little on proving theorems, focusing much more on helping students recognize patterns and why they make sense. Generally this pattern-based logic will help the students who aren't visually oriented, which is the majority of... Read More

SAT Writing

First off, I need to say that I don't think either the SAT or the ACT does a very good job of assessing writing skills; they give dorky prompts that pose unrealistic either/or questions, and their grading is notoriously poor. I can, however, teach students to organize their thoughts quickly and write a good essay which is most likely to succeed with those evaluating the essays. I can help them overcome the most obvious problems that plague beginning writers and warn more skilled writers off a... Read More

TOEFL

I spent two years teaching English at the American Language Center in Morocco, teaching all levels from beginners to those preparing to take the TOEFL test. More recently I have been volunteering as an ESL tutor at Kentuckiana Refugee Ministries.

While my experience is that conducting the classes entirely in English is the fastest way to become proficient, I am comfortable adjusting the amount of native-language use to the preferences of the student. I am at ease in both French and... Read More

Study Skills

Having been a tutor since 2010, and having worked with students of all ages and ability levels in that time, I'm pretty familiar with the various issues that students (and especially parents) are referring to when they speak about study skills. The first of these tends actually to be time management skills, which tends to be related to the second, which is focus and attention management issues. Of course, many are actually asking about the specific skills related to studying, such as how to read... Read More

ESL/ESOL

I spent two years teaching English at the American Language Center in Morocco, teaching all levels from beginners to those preparing to take the TOEFL test. More recently I have volunteered as an ESL tutor at Kentuckiana Refugee Ministries.

While my experience is that conducting the classes entirely in English is the fastest way to become proficient, I am comfortable adjusting the amount of native-language use to the preferences of the student. I am at ease in both French and Spanish... Read More

Public Speaking

Hi, I've given public speeches for most of the past 25 years as the head of a major communications organ for the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), and am currently an adjunct teacher at Spalding University in Louisville, where I teach four courses a year in "Effective Public Speaking 201."

If these are not sufficient qualifications, I can give you more detail.

ACT Reading

Reading comprehension is one of the slowest content areas to improve a score on, because the truth is reading a lot over several years is really the best way to do extremely well on this test. However, there are a number of ways to approach the test that will improve most students' scores 3 or 4 points, and it doesn't take most students more than half a dozen sessions to get the hang of those techniques.

ACT English

I have worked as a writer and editor for more than 20 years, but my greatest strength as an ACT English tutor is recognizing the kinds of questions most students are likely to miss and helping them recognize those.

I am also good at helping students understand when they can trust their ear and when they must follow rules because standard oral American English doesn't follow the rules the test's grammarians are looking for.

ACT Math

This is one of my specialties. I'm good at helping students get comfortable with the content areas where they feel a little shaky, because confidence is one of the most important issues in taking the test. But my greatest strength is in helping them learn a half-dozen short-cuts to getting answers quickly and learning which questions to skip the first time through. Finally, there are 8 or 10 things they need to look for throughout the test. When they spot one, it's a sure short-cut to the right... Read More

ACT Science

This is an odd test, because it actually relies very little on the supposed content, scientific knowledge. What it tests most is the ability to make sense of charts, figures, tables and diagrams, and to recognize what patterns in those visual aids imply. Some reading comprehension work and some math work can help, but more than anything this is an area where practice in the techniques of taking the test will pay off. I help students work through practice tests until they're comfortable working... Read More

Read all subject qualifications »

Education

Undergrad, University of Virginia Graduate, Masters, New York University

First Lesson — I was very impressed by the way Alan took the time to go over the lesson with me and tell me what he thought the course of action should be for my daughter and her learning disability. He was very open to my past obervations of her and I feel very good that he is part of our ACT training. My daughter thought his lesson was helpful and was not dreading going back--as she has with some tutors in the ...

— Andrea from Louisville, KY

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Hourly Fee

Standard Hourly Fee: $42.00

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Alan will travel within 15 miles of Louisville, KY 40206.

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Alan K.