Tuesday, April 13, 2010
QEP and Tutoring
How have the responses from your students been since you gave them a highlighter and showed them how to highlight their texts? Have you noticed them highlighting without you asking them to? Have your students started referring to the textbook more frequently? What are some of the push backs from your students? Did you have to alter your approach? Have you been able to identify QEP students?
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Sara Nasab said...
ReplyDeleteI couldn't find the highlighters but I did ask a couple of students to refer to their book to find problems similar to their homework. They weren't too happy about it and were very resistant. Some of them acted like they didn't even know how to use a book. Both people I asked to do this said they didn't even understand what they just read. Has anyone had luck with how to approach students like this?
Kate said...
ReplyDeleteI haven't really had any QEP students per se, but I agree that I always refer student back to the book whenever they have questions about math. When it comes to English, I can definately say that there have been some students who don't really understand what they read. For example, one girl I was tutoring yesterday came in with E.E. Cummings's "In Just," which is a poem that is layered with all kinds of meaning that she was unable to narrow into a 2-3 page paper. Part of the problem for her was the format of the poem, but I also stressed to her that there are multiple interpretations in literature. I kept asking her, "What do you think?", specifically pinpointing certain lines and assking her what she thought Cummings was getting at. She was interested in hearing what I had to say about the poem, but I also wanted her to come up with her own ideas instead of simply copying down what her teacher and I said about it.
The best way I can think of to respond to your question, Sara, is to ask the students to break down the text a little bit at a time. If they read it all at once, it's overwhelming and they might not understand. However, if you read it with them slowly and help them to paraphrase each sentence (maybe even each clause, if you have to), then it might help them get a little closer to understanding what they're reading. I'd be interested to hear what everyone else has to say about this, too.
March 23, 2010 7:19 AM
Bobbie said...
ReplyDeleteI haven't had any QEP students either. I have been able to get some students to use a highlighter when reading through their notes and when preparing for a test. What I suggest to them is that they highlight just what they think is important in each question. In Geology, the notes that they are using come directly from the textbook. I haven't had the opportunity to tutor anyone in history yet. Personally, instead of just telling us how to use it, maybe we should have had training in how to use QEP in the subject's we tutor. In geology, they don't really use the textbook, they get all the information for their test from the notes.
Most of the student's haven't been real receptive to using the highlighters. I will keep trying.
March 23, 2010 9:19 AM
Brandy said...
ReplyDeleteI must echo what has been said before because I had no students who I could recommend QEP too. I think in theory this sounds like a great idea and if students came in for English help on reading the stories or things like that, but for the most part the students who come in are those who have an essay due and they are more interested in getting that done than worrying about anything else in the class. I do hope that this works out well and think that it's a great idea, maybe if teachers keep pushing this then more students will come in and be open to participating also.
Charles Blakely said...
ReplyDeleteI am not familiar with QEP, but from what I am reading from above posts, it has to do with getting students to use their textbook more effectively. More than half of the students that I tutor, I know for a fact, they haven't even cracked the book open. I am trying to show them how to navigate through a mathematics book and show them it is not that scary.
Jane! said...
ReplyDeleteI have always encouraged my history and government students to highlight the important points in their notes. The fact that this is a QEP technique is lost to most of them but it does help.Highlighting in various colors and only the important points and not the whole sentence have worked well with several of my students. The chemistry students are very different. Most of them have never opened their book and just work from the problems presented in the test review and their class notes.I do try and direct them to the book but they often complain it is very difficult to understand. I must confess I agree. For most of the students reading and trying to understand most things can be a problem.This is only compounded by the complex language in a chemistry text. However, if you break it down in a language they understand they usualy get it.
March 27, 2010 4:58 PM
Jonathan said...
ReplyDeleteI've given one highlighter to a student and encouraged her to read her textbook more. I'll keep you guys posted after I see her again. It's hard to identify QEP students unless the student know for a fact that they enrolled in a QEP class or you will hear them mentioning about some group work or different kinds of activities that they are doing in class. That will give you an idea that they might be in a QEP Class. Encouraging students to read their textbooks is a real difficult task especially if they are not used to reading their textbooks all along. But I had one student who came in for one specific problem that he was totally lost in, then he saw me looked through the index about the topic of the problem and go from there. He was surprised that I found the topic in the index and said "I didn't know that you could do that". Then I told him, if it's been tackled in class so most probably "It's in your book." He was satisfied and decided to just go home and read from there. So, I believe that showing your students some of your studying techniques especially in utilizing your textbook is one of the ways to help promote QEP.
April 8, 2010 9:08 PM
Melissa said...
ReplyDeleteI haven't had any QEP students, I do have students that use their books for Accounting. When they ask a question about their homework I refer them to their books and I show them where I got the information to help them with the subject of their problem.
April 12, 2010 9:23 AM
I haven't had any QEP students just yet. At Central campus, I tutor ESOL and at South campus I tutor Math. With respect to the ESOL students, the students usually come in with specific questions or words they are struggling with. The class exercises done in class as well as some of their homework is done in their books; although some opt to write out their answers on a separate sheet for purposes of reselling their books.
ReplyDeleteWith respect to students needing help with Math, I refer them to the book if the center is busy and there are other students needing help. Usually if I refer them to the book, I try to find a similar example problem they can follow. Additionally I might refer them to a certain page that summarizes the rules or formulas under discussion.