TutorPug Blog

My unofficial business tagline is “being the person I needed when I was younger.” I occupy a unique niche in a high school or college student’s life – I’m not a parent nor a teacher – but I am an adult who will stop, listen, and really, truly care about what their struggles are.

After receiving an email this summer from the Office of Academic Affairs and Integrity, asking for an interview in response to a student’s request for an investigation into a cheating allegation, I got to thinking about my answer to a frequently asked question. “Why aren’t you a millionaire, with all of this online school?” my friends have inquired over the past year.

I have a confession to make – and it’s a tough pill for my ego to swallow. It happened when I was 20 or 21, yet still makes me cringe.

Just what it sounds like – instead of receiving an A, B, C, D, or F, with points associated with each letter grade to calculate a numerical GPA – a student receives either a P for pass or an F for fail in a class.

Several institutions have elected to dismiss all in-person instruction after Thanksgiving break, and conversations I’ve had since OU’s announcement show some students are freaking out.

Formally, and according to an amalgamation of definitions from various online dictionaries and Wikipedia, a policy is a deliberate system of principles adopted or proposed by a government, business or individual to guide decisions and achieve rational outcomes.

When COVID first hit last spring, schools had to unexpectedly pivot and move from traditional, comfortable, in-person classroom learning to an online platform.

I believe one of the main roles of a teacher is to try as hard as possible to find each student’s “Learning Language.” How does each student need to receive a piece of information so that it clicks, or sticks, or makes sense?

Back in early summer I was bopping through the house of a Sunday evening and passed the TV, which my husband had tuned to 60 Minutes. Heads of colleges were discussing options for the fall semester in response to COVID-19.

I can’t sing. I can’t really play an instrument. But I’ve always wanted to perform – somehow – in my own little world. So for Christmas I asked for a ukulele…and I got one.

Few things in life are actually guaranteed. If you wear your seatbelt, you’re less likely to perish in a car crash, but it’s not guaranteed.

When I was in high school, I ran cross-country. Or at least I tried to run cross-country.

Go. To. Class. Worship your syllabus Meet your professors/instructors/teachers Record major assignments for all classes in your agenda/calendar Establish effective study HABITS now!

After having worked with college freshmen for over ten years, I have noticed a recurring pattern among the majority of my students.