McColl Tutoring
About
I have a PhD in English literature from Vanderbilt University. I have 6 years of experience with teaching writing, rhetoric, and American and British literature at the college level. I was a National Merit Scholar and scored in the 98th percentile for the GRE subject exam in English.
My expertise includes college prep, college application assistance, essay writing, test prep, and editing. My bachelor's degree is in creative writing, and I have a lot of experience with teaching poetry, short stories, plays, and novels. I also have a year of experience with teaching remedial classes.
My passion is helping students to develop their own unique voice. It's crucial to foster the ability to write clearly for high school, college, and beyond. In my experience, students who struggle with writing and understanding literature often don't realize the power that their contribution can have. I've worked extensively with students who aren't confident in their ability to write clearly and persuasively, and sometimes all it takes is cultivating their sense of who they are as a writer, whether that's academic, creative, or otherwise.
Highlights
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Frequently asked questions
What is your typical process for working with a new student?
First, we discuss the goals for tutoring, whether that's honing skills that they already have or beefing up their writing ability. I review the student's recent writing or past preparation, and then we dive into creating an action plan for reaching the goals we have set. My process is tailored to the needs and abilities of each student.
What education and/or training do you have that relates to your work?
I have a PhD in English from Vanderbilt University and 6 years of experience with teaching writing, Aristotelian rhetoric, and literature, including two semesters of teaching students who weren't prepared for college.
Do you have a standard pricing system for your lessons? If so, please share the details here.
I charge by a sliding scale system, depending on the length and intensity of what the student needs, starting at $35 per hour and going up to $60 per hour.
How did you get started teaching?
I have always had a passion for nurturing students. I first learned pedagogy through teaching as part of the University of Maryland's writing program. That experience was crucial for my development as a teacher because it taught me to meet students at their level. Because University of Maryland is such a large state school, students frequently enter at many different levels of writing and reading ability. Some students wrote and thought at an advanced level, and my responsibility was to foster that ability and to hone their skills. Other students entered in at a much lower level, and we would have to begin working together on the paragraph or even sentence level.
At Vanderbilt, I had the opportunity to work with some amazing students who were at the top of their game. I also taught students who weren't adequately prepared but were accepted because of other talents (e.g., art, music, athletics).
What types of students have you worked with?
I've worked primarily with college students, and I've also done some test prep with high school students.