Experienced chemist and certified teacher provides online tutoring in Chemistry from Halifax, NS

Learn more about Stewart

• 1) When and why did you develop an interest in your chosen field?

  My main field of interest in regards to science is chemistry. While I find the other sciences and other topics interesting chemistry has held my attention for a long time. I first became interested in chemistry several years ago while in high school. When taking general science my instruction in chemistry wasn't very stimulating and I found I lacked interest and understanding. However, I luckily stuck with chemistry and took more advanced high school classes relating to chemistry. While the content and experiments were interesting the most important thing that led to my interest in chemistry were the teachers of these advanced classes. They had such knowledge of the subject and a desire to share their knowledge in a way that made the subject interesting. So my interest in chemistry can be traced back to great chemistry teachers.

• 2) What makes you passionate about your subject?

  One of the best things about chemistry and about understanding chemistry is that it gives an insight into how our bodies work, how technology works, how the world works, and how the universe works. This understanding of how things work comes from an understanding of how small particles act and how their behaviour influences large objects. Knowledge of chemistry can help explain things that people encounter in everyday life from "how does soap clean my hands?" to "where do the different colours of fireworks come from?" and "Why do areas far from large bodies of water typically have extreme temperatures while those near the coast often have more moderate temperatures?" This knowledge of how things work and being able to share this knowledge with others makes me passionate about chemistry.

• 3) What do you like about tutoring? What makes you a "Superprof"?

  One thing I like about tutoring is the ability to help students understand and even develop their own passion for the subject. I have seen so many students go from completely confused to having the ability to eloquently discuss chemistry topics and even want to pursue chemistry on their own. Being able to help students have "lightbulb moments" and discover their interests is a great thing about tutoring.
  
  One of the things that may make me a "SuperProf" is my ability to explain things in different ways. If a student is confused about a concept I can often find many ways to explain it that they have never heard from their teacher. Eventually we can find the explanation that works for the student. I also try to relate concepts to real life and to things that the student will understand. Chemistry, science, and math can all be very abstract. However, it is often possible to explain an example of how the concepts work in real life or provide an analogy to explain a phenomenon.

• 4) Do you have any role models; a teacher that inspired you? Please explain.

  In terms of teachers who inspired me I have to connect back to the previous question about how I developed my interest in chemistry. It was because of amazing high school chemistry teachers that I developed my interest. I like to think that I am able to continue on their work that inspired me by inspiring future chemists and scientists and just be encouraging students to follow their passions.

• 5) What are your keys to success?

  My keys to success would be 1) pursuing happiness and enjoyment as much as possible both in life and work. 2) Taking time for self-care. and 3) Being kind to those around me and I find that kindness often comes back around.