Quantitative Reasoning Center

The Goucher Quantitative Reasoning (QR) Tutoring Center is a drop-in or individual tutoring opportunity for all Goucher Students. Come check us out. The QR Center, Where You Count!

Drop-in hours

Tutors are available in the Library at the Athenaeum on the 3rd floor, Sunday through Thursday from 4 – 9 p.m.

View the Drop-In Schedule (PDF)

Schedule an appointment

If drop-in hours do not fit your schedule, individual and small group tutoring is available by appointment. Make an account and schedule an appointment using the link below.

Schedule an Appointment

What We Do

Goucher College’s Quantitative Reasoning (QR) Center in the Center for Data, Mathematical, and Computational Sciences supports students in mathematics, science, social science, and other courses with a QR or Data Analytics (DA) emphasis. The QR Center provides programming for student development of quantitative literacy and applications of mathematics and math-based skills to real-life situations. Currently, the QR Center provides drop-in tutoring to students in STEM-based courses who need help with math-based skills or content involved in their coursework.

                                                         chart

The QR Center seeks to engage students in their QR and DA development by supporting math and related aspects of their learning while at Goucher College. The above figure, depicting QR as the intersection of discipline or real-life based content, critical thinking, and mathematics, was adapted from Susan Elrod, “Quantitative Reasoning: The Next "Across the Curriculum" Movement.” Peer Review, Summer 2014, Vol. 16, No. 3. Similarly, QR Center programming will pull from all three contexts to support student QR development.

 

Preparing for Tutoring

QR Center Q-Tutoring can be used to develop math problem-solving, learning, and mindset skills in order to learn more successfully in your math-related courses. If you find any core math-related material challenging in your courses, please seek out support from our drop-in tutors. While Q-Tutors do not do homework or help with class-specific content, they will be able to help students better understand quantitative material in these classes. Student tutors may assist with basic quantitative skills, such as arithmetic, algebra, graphing, data management and visualization, and writing about numbers. Typical situations for QR Center Q-tutoring include:

  • A student in calculus is having issues with integration techniques but realizes they actually need help with their knowledge of the trigonometric functions, specifically on how they relate to each other through identities such as the Pythagorean identities, and the double or half angle identities. A student who is unsure of how to manipulate trigonometric functions, or of their definitions in relation to each other and the unit circle would have difficulty applying these techniques to integration and so would benefit greatly from building these skills through the QR center. This student should see a Q-tutor who is a math major or who has completed calculus at Goucher.

  • For students enrolled in science classes, such as chemistry or biology, a QR Center peer tutor can assist with math-related content and skills. For example, if you need assistance with dimensional analysis or unit conversion, a tutor would be able to help review this information and work through problems with you. Similarly, if you want support working through material about growth, decline, or decay in a biology-based course, Q-tutors are a great fit!

  • Are you in an economics or other class and struggling with manipulating and solving algebraic expressions (for example, when given two equations with two unknown variables, can you solve for both variables?)? If you are given an equation, can you solve for the inverse of that equation? Do you struggle with graphing equations and solving for the slope, and the x and y intercepts? If so, you would benefit greatly from building these skills through the QR Center. You should see a Q-tutor who is an economics major or someone who has a strong command of algebra and pre-calculus at Goucher.

 

What should I bring to tutoring?

Please come prepared in order to maximize your time at tutoring. Feel free to bring any materials you’d like to discuss. While our tutors will not complete graded assignments with you, they will be sure to help you with similar material, in particular the mathematical concepts, so that you can be more successful on those assignments. Please bring:

  • Your book
  • Your laptop
  • Additional assigned reading
  • Your class notes
  • Practice problems, homework, and old or practice exams
  • Your questions

 

Does the QR Center offer private tutoring?

At this time, the QR Center offers drop-in and individual, appointment-based tutoring. If you feel that you need additional support, such as regularly scheduled Q-Tutoring appointments, please contact the QR Center Manager at qrcenter@goucher.edu. Otherwise, the QR Center does not offer private tutors for hire.