INTERNATIONAL TUTORING
These days students include private tutoring in their education if they want to do their best in school, and in life.
It’s pretty common these days for students to include some private tutoring in their education- if they want to do their best in school, and in life.
And especially when English isn’t the first language, it’s very usual to take some extra help- in conversation, reading, literature, and writing.
Many of my students are already very strong in math and science, and they might need a little push in English and across the humanities to feel confident, and start doing really well.
Others are gifted readers and writers in English already, and doing extra work in these subjects is a fun challenge for them.
I'm happy to work with students at all levels, and to meet them there too.
Working with me, students get a unique learning and growth experience. One that translates not only to better grades and more confidence in writing and communicating. But even, to being a better critical thinker, and a more well-informed global citizen.
My name is Dr. Kerry McElroy, and I’m a private tutor, a university admissions and language consultant, and a working writer, editor, and journalist.
I hold two master’s degrees, from Columbia and Carnegie Mellon in the US, and a PhD from Concordia in Canada, with joint work at McGill. I’ve taught dozens of university courses across departments and schools, from Cinema, Art History, and Women’s Studies to Community History and Theatre.
While I was on the more traditional professor route, I often lectured to rooms of hundreds of students. Designed courses. Went to conferences. Graded hundreds of essays and tests. The usual PhD path.
I was pretty good at this career. But during my PhD, I also began to take off-campus work as a private tutor. And out of the blue, from a side job I took to pay the bills, I found a true calling instead!
By now I’ve been in international private teaching for six years, and I’ve logged about 11,000 hours tutoring. I have a waiting list to work with me, and I love what I do.
To me, one-on-one work is really the more rewarding path. It allows for the developing of relationships— to watch your students grow, talk with them like the individuals they are, ask them questions and listen to their answers, challenge them- and truly see them improve.
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Today I teach students of all ages all around the world, who speak multiple languages and attend all different kinds of school systems.
I work with small children with little English, high schoolers with medium levels transitioning between schools and countries, international students in the world’s most selective boarding schools, and adult francophones and Chinese speakers for business English. Some of my students I’ve worked with for years, and watched them grow up- from students shy to even speak English to fluent speakers and great writers with top grades, in English schools around the world.
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In my classes, we might focus on writing, English literature, ESL practice, or general humanities- history, ethics, politics, society, speech. We also do work for AP, SAT and ACT, and IB prep.
But in addition to schoolwork or test prep, I also have a motto I call “everything is English”.
“I had Kerry as my tutor for more than six years. I first started our classes because I wanted to improve my English skills beyond what was taught at my day school. In these lessons, Kerry was a great mentor who adapted to my needs. Our classes varied from revising school assignments to reading and analyzing essays, stories, and humanities pieces. She taught me to write essays, but more importantly, to think critically and logically and to explore perspectives and writing styles. These skills not only helped me in excelling in my English classes but also in developing the confidence to write on my own such as CVs, personal statements for internships, and this very testimonial. For these reasons, I recommend Kerry if you’re struggling in English or simply what to improve as I did—she’s more than qualified!
Kerry, I was so lucky to have you as my tutor, it was honestly life-saving. I’ll definitely keep an eye out for anyone who might need your help and recommend you to them! :) ”
This means I take a highly interdisciplinary approach to helping students learn to read well, tackle research methods, and ultimately write well, too.
I reach them where they're being themselves. This might mean reading articles, watching videos, and practicing notes on a story of a new scientific breakthrough. It might mean discussing global political events, or something going on at their school. Or it might mean reading a review of a favourite video game or series, and then writing their own.
Creative writing, argumentation, debate, research. Poetry, theatre, politics, ethics, history. Science, the environment, technology. We literally do it all.
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And so with students from native speaker to ESL multilingual, and children to adults, I’m always thinking about how education and language work differently in different cultures.
And specifically, as someone who speaks, reads, and writes multiple languages myself, I tend to take a language approach to writing and English.
Using my own multilingual skills and global citizen profile, this might mean a class where we switch back and forth between French and English. Or mini-lessons on Greek and Latin roots, or using translate apps to compare words across English and Mandarin.
Or another where a native Chinese speaker studying in Europe reads from her German study guide for a history test, and I give her a lecture back in English- all on the French Revolution!
These are daily moments for me, and they're a huge part of what makes my teaching practice unique.
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Finally, with a teacher who's also a working writer and journalist, my students benefit from an instructor who isn’t only in the classroom.
It’s not everyday that students get the chance to do line-by-line edits live with a professional editor, for example. It brings about an immense and visible jump in their writing abilities, from clarity to structure to voice.
Often as an exercise, we might read one of my latest articles for an international newspaper or magazine, for comprehension- then use it as a text to analyze for style, tone, perspective, language, positionality, and argument.
With these kinds of real-world stories as case studies, I’m able to get creative, engaged, and thoughtful responses out of students who “don’t like writing”, “aren’t good at English”, or "don't follow the news".
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All this works alongside my instinctive role as something of a counsellor to my students, too– with my inherent curiosity and respect for them, their lives, and their study and cultural experiences.
To truly be good at this one-on-one work entails warmth and kindness, patience and humour. And I excel in connecting with them no matter where they are, or how serious or shy they might be at first. I pride myself on being able to reach all of them– in part, simply because I like to listen to them!
It’s so extremely gratifying for me to offer this support, and then watch all types of students gain confidence. And, to see concrete changes in their writing, their abilities, and their grades.
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So: hello, bonjour, nihao! Ciao! Hola, y guten morgen.
I’d love to talk with you about your tutoring goals and needs, whatever or wherever they are.