Trouble with PHYS 218 - advice from current students

<p>Any current engineering students initially struggle with PHYS 218? What is the best/most immediate path to help? D3 said her homework assignment slammed her last night. I already told her to go to office hours. Anyone have any experience with any of the tutoring programs on campus?</p>

<p>Howdy cromette!</p>

<p>I’m obviously not a student, but wanted to ensure your student is aware of the following free tutoring opportunities on campus:</p>

<p>Peer Academic Services - scheduled and drop-in tutoring: [Peer</a> Academic Services » Tutoring](<a href=“http://slc.tamu.edu/tutoring/drop-in-and-appointment-tutoring/]Peer”>http://slc.tamu.edu/tutoring/drop-in-and-appointment-tutoring/)</p>

<p>Dept. of Multicultural Services - [Welcome</a>! | Tutoring Services](<a href=“http://tutor.tamu.edu/]Welcome”>http://tutor.tamu.edu/)</p>

<p>The Academic Success Center (<a href=“http://successcenter.tamu.edu/[/url]”>http://successcenter.tamu.edu/&lt;/a&gt;) can also be a good resource. This office provides workshops on developing study skills, academic coaching, and ongoing support.</p>

<p>Hope this helps!</p>

<p>Jon Kotinek
Associate Director
Honors and Undergraduate Research</p>

<p>Thanks!! Yes, I am sure she’s aware of those…but I really appreciate the links! Do you know if you have to be part of the LLC at Hulaballoo Hall to take advantage of the tutoring there?</p>

<p>I don’t think that you do. I believe that those are sessions hosted by Peer Academic Services. You can contact that office (979-845-2724) to get more information.</p>

<p>Best,</p>

<p>Jon Kotinek</p>

<p>Thanks again!</p>

<p>Cromette: I remember my S and I were told at NSC (not sure exactly by who, maybe faculty advisor during PetE orientation) that there are a lot of different tutoring options (including private services) and that its important to find the one that works best for your student. The faculty advisor said that in their experience some students do better with the services that Jon described above; others do better with the private services. Its important to keep trying different options until your student finds one that works for them.</p>

<p>There’s also a help desk:
<a href=“http://physics.tamu.edu/students/current/ugrad/[/url]”>http://physics.tamu.edu/students/current/ugrad/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Thanks, izelkay! I think she’s going to check out the tutoring at her dorm tonight. If that doesn’t get her turned in the right direction, I’ll remind her about the help desk.</p>

<p>Jroback, yes…we heard something similar. There seems to be a plethora of different avenues for help. That’s why I was kind of wondering if any of the current students had any first hand accounts of what worked well for them. I guess she’ll just dive in and see what works best for her, as you say. Cool that they have so many resources.</p>

<p>Hi Cromette, last year based on a tip from a student review on myedu my S signed up for A+ tutoring and finished with an A. It is private group tutoring and the cost is about the same as a pricey textbook. The tutoring sessions are at crazy hours but my S found it very effective in translating what he had a hard time learning from his prof. We thought it was well worth the cost.</p>

<p>Thanks spectrum! I will have her check into it. HER hours are crazy. She doesn’t really get freed up until 7.</p>

<p>cromette: I am curious, had your daughter taken Phys in HS?</p>

<p>WAPacker, yes, but not AP, and she did well. The coursework is just challenging, and there’s a lot of work. She is understanding everything in class, but the homework has been over her head. All of it gets a lot of reinforcement. I’m sure it’s just a rocky patch. Her prof’s office hours don’t work for her, but she IS emailing him, so he knows she’s struggling and looking for tutoring. She has a study partner. I think that helps.</p>

<p>This is not particularly relevant to your daughter but way back in the dark ages when I took Engr Phys I (Mechanics) I felt like it was beating me up pretty bad (under 50% on the first exam)but at the end of the semester I had earned a B. I had only taken a basic HS physics (not AP type) in HS.
I am sure your daughter will do fine as I am sure she is a much better student than I was as a freshman.</p>

<p>I’m sure you were a GREAT student!! Thanks for the encouragement. I think you’re right. If she applies herself and gets some help, it will all come out alright. :)</p>

<p>@cromette, sorry I missed this thread, my computer was down for a few days. </p>

<p>I spoke to my son on the weekend and he also thought physics 218 was challenging & different than AP Physics B, that he took in senior year. His school didnt offer C. </p>

<p>So, far, he hasn’t said anything about h-w difficulty. However, he did say something about not being able to access h-w problems today because the website was down. i hope he has not been procrastinating until the last day.</p>

<p>Fortunately for both of them, I believe that each individual homework assignment is of very little actual grade value. The main thing is that they do the assignments so that they are prepared for tests. Here’s hoping they stay on top of it!</p>

<p>Does your daughter use University Physics? If so, I can email her a pdf of the solution manual if she doesn’t already have it. It does a great job of explaining the solutions for the most part.</p>

<p>Not sure, I’ll check.</p>