- Getting familiar with some basic background on Plato
 - Introducing Plato’s philosophy of metaphysical idealism 
 - Exploring Plato’s Allegory of the Cave and how it relates to ethics and other fields today

I have twice taught this series as a course in a public charter school and have referred to the same content for tutoring students in philosophy online. I love introducing to students the ideas and philosophical movements that have shaped our world today through the innovation, creativity, and rigor of those who gave birth to them.


FURTHER BACKGROUND:

I'm a math and philosophy tutor, writer, martial artist, amateur actor, gardener, and super-learning advocate with a love for languages and cultures around the world.

I graduated magna cum laude in 2006 with a degree in philosophy and minors in Japanese studies and religion from Gustavus Adolphus College, a liberal arts school recognized for its high standards in teaching and scholarship. During that time, I also studied my junior year abroad at Kansai Gaidai University, Japan, through the competitively selective Asian Studies Program. As part of my degree, I was trained in critical thinking, analytical essay writing, and formal predicate logic and further enriched by my enrollment in the school’s "Three Crowns Curriculum" for advanced interdisciplinary academics. My inspiration for becoming an educator was furthered, among other things, by the opportunity to present my undergraduate thesis to a panel in the Minnesota Students Society of Philosophy for the purposes of an honors addendum to my major. 

In 2005, I started my career of tutoring through an elementary school outreach reading program and a volunteer ESL service at a local community center. After graduation, I returned to Japan to work for two years through the Japan Exchange Teaching (JET) Program as an assistant ESL instructor in various public junior high schools and elementary schools. I then accepted an offer for a position as an activities director and lead English teacher for a small privately owned language school called Mitoyo International Exchange, Inc. Following that, I began tutoring English to a host of international students online. My efforts over the past few years have given me over 1000 hours of tutoring in subjects that range over mathematics, language, philosophy, and test prep.

In 2018, I sat in for, and passed, the Praxis II 5161 (Mathematics Content Knowledge), but ended up working teaching philosophy and computer programming to high school students in a local renowned charter school network. The rest of the time, I continue to tutor children, high school students, and adults in math, ESL, Japanese, and philosophy -- or am otherwise spending time with my wife and three-year-old at home.

I am certified through the Praxis II (5161) exam to teach high school mathematics (pre-algebra through calculus), but my range of subjects has included ACT/SAT test prep, college-level math, science, languages, and philosophy. Most especially, my accelerated learning methods for studying and conquering standardized tests have been recognized by my students and parents as exceptional and against the grain of what the majority of tutors and programs offer.

As of March of 2019, I have had over 1000 registered tutoring hours on top of 3+ years of experience teaching in the classroom. This background, coupled with my bent for lifelong learning, has given me a knack for finding and rounding out students' weak spots and boosting their confidence in themselves. I like to think I've even helped some students find the joy in learning math, language, and philosophy, as I have, by helping them break the code and dissolve the illusion so often impressed on us that everything about these subjects is difficult, complicated, or even impenetrable. It's not.

For me, every individual is a world of possibilities -- and that belief in me is what I think allows me to achieve my bigger purpose in life.