BY: LILLIAN THUM
Staff Writer
A new initiative called “Embedded Tutoring” has proven to be a success for those enrolled in science courses at Meramec.
Sally Kloppe is the Coordinator of Peer Tutoring and Embedded Tutoring on the Meramec campus. She says that the tutoring is designed to take place within the scheduled lab times themselves.
“Embedded tutoring meets students where they’re at, literally,” Kloppe said. “The student tutors go into the lab section of those classes and offer help to those students.”
The embedded tutoring is designed “to help those who need help the most” with the first implementation in “classes with high rates of Ds, Fs, and withdrawals.” Specifically, there is a focus on Anatomy and Physiology 1, Chemistry 1, and Intro Biology courses, which “usually have D, F, and W rates between 30-40%.”
There is no need to sign up, as Kloppe said “the tutor is walking to every table and every student” which she said benefits all students in the courses as the tutors know their stuff.
“A lot of the tutors we have are students who went to tutoring, even A students, high GPA students,” Kloppe said.
The students are not the only ones who like the embedded tutoring. Kloppe states that the program has “100% buy-in for all the sections and faculty” and that the feedback she has gotten “has been overwhelmingly positive from both students and instructors.”
Kloppe describes that “the instructors benefit too because the tutors help take the load off by going around answering questions and making sure the students are doing the labs and experiments correctly.”
If someone wants to become a tutor, Kloppe describes the process.
“Getting an instructor recommendation or tutor recommendation [would be a good starting point],” she said. “Then email us at the end of the semester.” When looking for new tutors, she also added, It’s not just about getting an A or B, it’s about the demeanor. [It’s about] the confidence, empathy, and patience.”
Rae Iseman is a tutor in the program, they tutor for Anatomy and Physiology 1 and Biology 111. These classes are aimed “at students going towards healthcare professions, like dental hygiene or nursing.” They describe their job as “helping pick out the subject matter to be successful in their future endeavors,” and to “help them with study skills.”
Iseman said, “These programs are really hard. You have to be a good student and spend a lot of time and do a lot of studying to do well. You don’t want to be taking these hard classes and figuring out how to study.”
Iseman addressed the issue of stigma in tutoring.
“There is this idea that if you go to tutoring you’re an off student, and that’s just, like, not true,” they said. “Tutoring is for everybody, and Embedded Tutoring helps them see that. Tutoring doesn’t make you a bad student, it makes you a good student.”
