Jason Heck

I am a mathematics teacher with ten years of classroom experience certified in the state of Texas to teach fourth to eighth grade mathematics and high school mathematics.  My most recent teaching assignment is being the team lead for our Pre-AP Geometry course.  I teach the majority of those AP-track students.  During my time teaching, I have come to enjoy one-on-one tutoring with students because I feel that this setting affords the opportunity to limit distractions and focus on encouraging a deeper understanding of mathematics, but most importantly, it allows me to tailor my efforts to what the student needs most.  At my school, during after-school tutorials, my room is a popular destination for the students of other teachers.  I feel this is due to the way I take the time to explain many of the "whys" along the way that foster a better understanding of the subject matter (more about that in teaching style), and our students appreciate my detailed approach. 

I have worked with both level and advanced students, so I am able to help any student no matter their level.

My teaching style focuses on establishing strong fundamentals before tackling more complicated objectives.  With a given objective, I prefer to ask strategic questions which will often enable a student to arrive at the desired goal through their own thinking: I believe the proper questioning strategies are crucial in assisting students on the path to understanding.  Of course, I love to answer their questions along the way.  I often learn more about my subject matter by listening to the questions the uninitiated have.  My method is not  simply feeding the answers to my students for the sake of completing an assignment; this does little to advance a student's knowledge.  When a student does something correctly, I heap praise upon them because it motivates them to go further.  However, if a student does something incorrectly, we take the time to understand what was done incorrectly, talk about how to avoid repeating it, and try again!

Success in mathematics comes from patient practice and perseverance.  I believe each of my students can achieve success in mathematics with the proper guidance and meaningful practice.