John Linneball Tutoring

It's not complex. I charge an hourly rate. It's a little more if you live far from me, since I'll have to cover my cost of transportation from my place to your place, or wherever we're meeting. Basically, I just want to give you good work at a good rate.

Typically, we discuss the goal of the tutoring (e.g., getting a certain score on the SAT, admission to a certain college, obtaining an athletic scholarship). I review the student's previous test scores, homework, papers, whatever is relevant. Then we do a diagnostic test pertinent to the subject and/or review a test the student has done in advance. Then we set up a study plan with goals and steps to reach those goals.

I always buy the most recent test prep books and read the news regarding tests.

I've done tutoring since I was in high school, and decided it was a good idea to get back into it back in 2002, when I wanted a source of income that wasn't practicing law. Let's put it this way; no one goes to see a lawyer when he or she is HAPPY. That can get to be a really negative experience.

Mostly, I do test prep for the SAT, SSAT, and ISEE, but I have also done LSAT prep, HSPT prep, and geometry and general high school tutoring. Basically, people usually want to prepare for important standardized tests, which makes perfect sense, since they are really important in determining college (and private high school, and law school) admissions.

I've helped several students improve their performance on the SAT; my students practically always walk away feeling like they've learned a lot about math, English, or whatever subject we've covered.

Ask the tutor how many students he or she has tutored. Ask the tutor where he or she went to college, graduate, or professional school, and how he or she did on the standardized tests. Ask what kind of training the tutor has received in the area you're hiring him or her for (for example, SAT course training with Kaplan), how many courses he or she has taught, and how long the tutor has tutored.

Most people know the things I'm about to write, but they're worth mentioning to those who don't (or just don't have them in the front of their minds). I'm only as effective as you are. Any work I do for you is really a partnership where I work *with* you. The effectiveness of my tutoring will increase exponentially as you increase the work you put into it. Also, ASK QUESTIONS. I work for you; you can't offend or annoy me by asking me to repeat or rephrase things, or asking related questions. As the old saying goes "The only stupid question is the one you didn't ask." Finally, "magic bullets" and "free lunches" don't exist. While test-taking tips and tricks can save time and improve your score, I can't magically make you understand things if you don't put in the practice time, and some problems (on tests, in homework) you encounter will be time-consuming and difficult. What I can do is help you save time on the questions where there are shortcuts and tricks, so you have more time to work on the truly hard problems. Finally, tutoring services and test prep companies are great, but hiring from a service or a tutoring company doesn't necessarily mean you're getting better service or more experienced tutors. You're often getting relatively inexperienced tutors, although they've gotten some training. Those places are where I got my training, which was great, but I'm better now than I was then. Some services don't even offer any real training, and don't provide any meaningful screening, so you may end up having to request a new tutor from those services if the first one isn't up to snuff. They can refund your money or offer additional hours for free, but can you get your time back?