Randy Tsoi Chan
About
Revised: 7:57 PM 1/21/2024
• My last COVID-19 vaccination was on November 30, 2023 with the updated Novavax vaccine. Also, on November 20,2023 I successfully passed a "Live Scan" which is a Department of Justice background check, and on November 22, 2023 I completed a "checkr" verification of my credentials (my undergraduate and my graduate degrees). Documentations will be presented to you before hiring.
My goal is to work myself out of this job in the most rewarding and satisfying way: the student saying to me "Yes, I'm all caught up-- in fact, I'm so far ahead, and I'll be able to do this from now on without your help", as soon as possible (but not any sooner).
(It was Einstein who said "Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not any simpler.")
• I enjoy teaching immensely. With a Master's Degree in mathematics, I am qualified to teach at both high school and college levels. I also have a B.A. in Mathematics and Physics (Double Major, with Honors).
Over decades, I have accumulated a tool box filled with mnemonic aids, short cuts, ultra fast mental arithmetic, clear and concise
presentations (for example, from basic set theory to integral calculus in 60 hours with retention rates that score very favorably
in the SAT, Advanced Placement, or university placement tests), and strategies in test-taking skills
Many students consider math a hard subject, so building confidence is essential and my tool box has many such confidence builders, the most popular being carrying mentally a Gregorian
calendar and name any day-of-the-week across the centuries in under a minute (with some practice, within 15 seconds).
Although my experience in classroom teaching were limited to teach the Affirmative Action Teaching Program at CSUS, three semesters teaching undergraduate classes in mathematics and statistics at CSUS (as a part time faculty member, not as a teaching assistant) while completing my MA degree, and one year as a Community Teaching Fellow while enrolled in the graduate mathematics program at UCSB, I have extensive experience
in one-on-one tutoring. An example of this was tutoring a high school senior who was enrolled in an honors calculus class but lacked the mathematical foundations and maturity to successfully complete the class. Tutoring him 2 hours twice a week for 16 weeks, I was able to build up his foundations in mathematics,
starting with basic set theory, then the rational and the real number systems, algebra, coordinate geometry, trigonometry, and
differential and integral calculus. This student then went on to take a placement test at UC Davis and received a perfect score
(placement/assessment tests are not supposed to produce perfect scores) and was thus exempt from taking any additional
mathematics classes for his BA degree in economics. Although I very seldom received payments for my tutoring because I did so as
a favor to my friends and relatives, in this case, as a token of appreciation, this student's father, who is a auto-mechanic (that was how we met), offered me free car repair services for life, and I
only get to pay him the required parts at cost.
I emphasize concepts and fundamental principles rather than memorizing formulas (such as the sum of the first n numbers, or
the sum of a geometric series). Understanding the concepts and thus the ability to solve problems and deriving formulas lasts for
life, whereas brute force memorizing only lasts until the day after the final exam.
An example:
To sum the first N numbers, my emphasis is adding the 2 rows, one in descending order and one in ascending order to obtain
N(N+1) ÷ 2, rather than memorizing the formula itself.
However, to assist in memorization, I often employ mnemonic aids, such as Johnson's Hexagon in trigonometry, or the sequence
of twelve single digit numbers (1,4,4,0,2,5,0,3,6,1,4,6) which essentially allows one to carry a perpetual Gregorian calendar in
one's head.
Similar to many, perhaps all, disciplines, mathematics is at its best, an art form. But most students are not aware of this until
they take upper division mathematics classes in college. It doesn't need to be this way. Early exposure to the beauty and elegance of
mathematics is both possible and desirable. This can be done with everyday examples, with understanding the concepts and the
foundations behind mathematics, and the interconnectedness between mathematics and other disciplines. Indeed, a student can
acquire "mathematics maturity" at an early age, and the sooner this occurs, the better will be for a student to acquire independent thinking ("thinking outside the box"), and thus will excel both in mathematics, as well as other seemingly unconnected disciplines.
And this is what I strive for when I teach mathematics in all levels of proficiencies.
I'm also interested in Literature / World Literature, Arts / Art History, Music and Musicology-- I have a non-monetized YouTube music channel at:
https://www.youtube.com/@newdigitalremasters
where I restore older music recordings and exchange ideas with my viewers. You are most welcome to visit and find out more about me there.
• My rates:
Each of my tutoring sessions is individually developed and prepared to fit your needs, this usually takes about 1½ hours for each hour of tutoring time. Your will learn much more efficiently, faster, retain more, and achieve fluency much sooner. You pay only for the tutoring session time, not my preparation or traveling time.
• For in-person tutoring:
$50 for a one hour session
$70 for a 90 minutes session with a 5 minutes break
• For remote tutoring:
$35 for a one hour session
$50 for a 90 minutes session with a 5 minutes break
If our locations are less than 60 miles apart, I would like to have our first tutoring session in person at a pre-agreed location, just to get to know each other. This in person session will be at my remote rate.
Best way to contact me is by email or by phone.
Randy Tsoi Chan
(96) 539-0690