Friday, September 23, 2011

TeachMD Verbal MCAT Videos Have Been Launched!

I have been teaching the Verbal MCAT for a decade now and have been developing the TeachMD method.  In the first video I introduce the idea that every Verbal MCAT passage is the same.  In the subsequent videos I hope to show how understanding this fact translates to success.

I originally started out working for some of the big test prep companies, but then moved on to tutoring privately as well as working for a great company Advantage Testing, who allowed me the freedom to use my own methods when teaching my students.  A few years ago I was encouraged by a colleague to sit down and write a book.  I did, and I thought it was pretty good, but it didn't quite capture the energy and focus that I have when sitting with a student one-on-one or standing in front of a classroom.  So I never published it.  But then I learned about the Khan Academy videos and it inspired me to use this new format; it also inspired me to publish it on-line for free.

This method works.  It's novel, and it has brought me self worth and satisfaction by working with students and waiting for the moment when it becomes their own.  I've also used it to support myself financially as I've gone through medical school and to fund my unpaid time in the developing world and at home.  But now I can financially support myself through being a physician and am able to give over my methods at no charge.

My mother is good at her job, and it has always amazed me that she takes a 4 week vacation every summer.  How can she feel comfortable leaving her job for that long?  She likes to say, the sign of a good manager is that when you leave work everything still gets done.  Being successful is no longer being needed.  I hope these videos will embody that sentiment and help as many people as possible.

This method isn't applicable only to the MCAT.  I've used it successfully with students taking other standardized tests, especially the GRE.  But what impresses me the most is when students tell me that everything they read has become easier for them to understand.  Our education system teaches us to read words, but it leave us on our own to figure out how to read critically and understand the authors' arguments.  And so my larger goal is to change that, one student at a time.

Please leave comments here on the videos and the method, and feel free to start conversations about your methods of teaching and how you have successfully reached students.