The Very Last Journal Entry

        The student also had a very good philosophy in his paper.  The point of the assignment is to create your own philosophy with supporting reasons and responses to objections, and I just really liked his view.  After we went through the paper, we just sat and talked for about fifteen minutes about how it is that he came up with his topic and how his life affected his choices.  I know we aren’t supposed to pry into their personal lives, but we were just talking like good buddies.  I think it helped him a lot because he seemed kind of nervous before the session, and getting to know me on a more than just superficial level seemed to make him feel more comfortable.  The paper assignment is a very personal experience, so I think that personal communication was necessary.

        I’ve also been having more sessions with the Korean students, and I think that I am getting better at finding stuff to say with them.  Its really interesting to learn about their culture, and I’m feeling less and less shy about asking them questions about the differences between America and Korea.  I haven’t had more than one session with the same student, though, which is good because I don’t have to come up with more topics.  However, I thought it would be nice  to speak with the same student more than once because I know that people feel more comfortable speaking when they are already acquainted with the tutor.  I think that these session are great though, and each student always thanks me and tells me that the one hour conversation has been such a help to their English speaking.  It feels good to get complimented in this way.