Honors Experiential Learning Project Proposal Form

Basic Information
Full Name: Akanksh Shetty
UC Email: Shettyap@mail.uc.edu
College: College of Engineering and Applied Sciences.
Major: Mechanical Engineering
Title: Peer Tutoring
Thematic Area: Leadership
Expected Project Start Date: August 24th, 2015
Expected Project End Date: December 15th 2015

Project Information
1. Provide a detailed abstract of your proposed honors experiential learning project.
I will be doing peer tutoring throughout the fall semester 2015. I will be helping students who
have problems with the following classes:
1) Calculus 1
2) General Chemistry 1
3) Engineering Models 1
at the University of Cincinnati. Students having questions or difficulties in these particular
classes will be scheduling an online appointment with me for a given time period. I would help
them learn tough concepts related to these courses to the best of my ability. This will go on over
the entire fall semester of 2015. I will go through a professional teaching training over the
summer. My goal with this is to make my peers comfortable with solving problems related to
these challenging classes that will be the foundation of their major and their future. I would also
like teach them some of the higher level concepts that would keep them ahead of the curve in
their future classes.
Clearly and thoroughly address how each of the following elements will be exhibited in
your work:
2. Connection to Learning Outcomes within the Honors Thematic Area

Has the ability to relate, communicate and work effectively with peers.
While tutoring I will be relating to the students who come to me for help. Since I have
already taken these classes and have done well in them, I have experience and I
understand what problems my peers will go through while taking this class. I would
easily be able to relate to their situation and this will help me help them. I will teach them
a whole new way of looking at test questions and the subject. This way will hopefully

make them more interested in the subject. This will help me enhance my communication
skills even further. This will also make me more patient and help me understand the
learning patterns of different people and teach me how to adapt to those patterns.

Develops a vision of the future and acknowledges the impact of decisions

My main goal with this is to make the student love the subject. I would like to embed the
same interest I have for these subjects in the students I teach. I realize that some of the
decisions I make will impact the learning and even the future of these students as these
classes are going to be a foundation of their career. If these students are good at and enjoy
these subjects they have a high chances of succeed in the near future.

3. Connection to Goals and Academic Theories (include reference list, as appropriate)

A. The peer tutoring relates to my academic goals as these are the classes that are the
basics of my major, Mechanical Engineering. Teaching takes a lot more effort than
learning and so this will help me get in-depth knowledge about the subjects. I will
also be exposed to different ideas that the students get to the table to solve problems.
Peer tutoring will also help me understand the way others think about the core
concepts related to these subjects. This not a traditional leadership role but I think this
will help me grow a lot on a personal and professional level.
B. I will be reading books like The art of Teaching which will help me enhance my
teaching skills and help me become a better peer tutor. This will help me grow on a
professional level and help me handle situations with real ease. This book will give
me instructors of all levels, offering valuable insight into the many challenges that
educators face, from establishing a persona in the classroom, to fostering
relationships with students, to balancing teaching load with academic writing and
research. The classroom is a form of theater, and the teacher must play various roles.
A good teacher may look natural, but that's the product of endless practice. The book
also considers such topics as the manner of dress that teachers adopt (and what this
says about them as teachers), the delicate question of politics in the classroom, the
untapped value of emeritus professors, and the vital importance of a settled,
disciplined life for a teacher and a writer.

4. Initiative, Independence, and/or Creativity

Instead of just talking about the subject without reconfirming that the students understand me, I
am taking the initiative to personally analyze the students ability and mental capability. This is
possible and would be successful because I am working with a relatively small group of students.
I think this is very essential and is one of the things that cannot be done in lectures due to the
large number of students. I am going to be working one on one independently, so I have to

monitor my own work and my own progress. I also have to be creative a lot of times, think of
examples to explain concepts that students can easily relate to. Working with a student one-onone will give me the opportunity to connect with them at a deeper level and push me to take it as
a challenge to make the students seeking my help better at the subject. Every student has a
different learning curve and adapting my responses to the students understanding will exercise
my creative outlook.

5. Reflection
I will be maintaining a journal for my progress through the semester as a peer tutor. In the
journal I will be writing the difficulties I have faced and the things I have learned about teaching
over the course of a semester. I will also be taking some pictures for memories of this
experience. All of this would be posted on my honors portfolio. I think by referring to this
journal I can go back to the challenges I faced during this experience and reflect on how I acted
on it. This will help me reflect more on my decision making skills and help me make better
decisions in the future.

6. Dissemination
I will be submitting an essay to the university honors program and also maintain a blog to
document this experiences for the public. I would also be posting parts of my journal on my
honors portfolio. I will be sharing specific things I learn via this experience and I hope that
others could read about my experience and learn something from it.

7. Project Advisor

Br. Michale Charron, OFM

Assistant director Peer tutoring program.
brmichalesh@gmail.com

8. Budget
Total cost for books be $ 400.