Fun Facts

Hi! My name is John Slefinger. I'm a grad student at Ohio State University, specializing in medieval English literature. That means I get to study knights, siege warfare, and really old poetry. I love it. Besides my life as a student, I also play rugby for a local men's club. I've played it for almost 9 years, and while I'm one of the smaller players, I love the sport.

Before I was a grad student, I spent a few years in South Korea working as a middle school teacher. That experience allowed me

About Me

I am a 3rd year PhD student at Ohio State University, specializing in English literature. In another three years, I should have my dissertation completed, and hopefully get a job as an English professor. For now, I'm researching, writing, taking classes, and teaching freshman composition at OSU.

I have taught for a long time now. I taught middle school full time for two years in South Korea. I also teach writing classes at OSU. Along the way, I have tutored students ranging from 1st grade to college in subjects as varied as basic reading-comprehension/ohio/columbus">reading comprehension and GRE test prep.

Both in and out of the classroom, I try to make columbus">tutoring as personal an experience as I can. I know that curricula are standardized, but I know everyone learns differently and everyone has strengths and weaknesses. When I meet a student, I do my best to get to know them so that I can 1) identify places we need to focus on and 2) tailor my lessons to make them as engaging as possible. You can't teach algebra exactly the same way with every student. I expect a lot from my students, but I try to make the learning experience as fun as possible.