Teaching the MCAT

[girlspowerss]

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I have been offered to interview for a small low-key MCAT prep company in my area (not Kaplan or TPR or anything). The interview requires that I teach a 4 minute lesson on ANY topic in ANY of the 5 subjects on the MCAT (chem, orgo, bio, phys, verbal). I was wondering if anyone had any tips or any suggestions on any topics that would be the easiest and most effective to teach. A topic that would be simple that I could convey suitably over the phone. Btw, this is a phone interview. I was thinking to teach kinematics and just talk briefly about each of the constant acceleration formulas. Or would a topic in Bio be the best since it is straight up memorization. What would you go with? Any feedback is greatly appreciated. Thanks!

 

[Schemp]

I think presenting some kind of fundamental principles and connecting those to a slightly more difficult topic is a good idea. So, for example, you could briefly explain the rationale behind Newton's laws (or one of the laws) and then transition into how those relate to the acceleration formulas. I think you'd be more hard-pressed to demonstrate a real understanding or interest in the subject matter if you were presenting what essentially amounts to a list of facts, but there are certainly challenging aspects of biology you could talk about (action potentials come to mind).

Good luck!

 

[FloatOn]

I would find most MCAT science topics difficult to explain over the phone. I'm a very visual person so I need to see and draw pictures, diagrams, flow charts, etc. Probably a bio topic would be best since it mostly doesn't involve numbers, math, symbols, and how to "work out" a problem. Even then, I can't think of a good bio topic! I'll come back to this later, as in later tonight.

 

[Morsetlis]

Use the outline method. Start with a topic, then definitions, then things you will teach from that topic. Go into details in each subsection, with examples. Finish by summarizing, including the subsection topic sentences in each summary.

I recommend something that isn't too visual. Try bio: mitosis for example.

 

[girlspowerss]

A friend of mine, who is a past teacher, told me the interviewer asks what I will bring to the prep company... what is something I will bring... how will i personally make the test prep better?
any ideas?
thanks

 

[vickpick]

i can't advise you, but good luck!!

 

[Misc]

A friend of mine, who is a past teacher, told me the interviewer asks what I will bring to the prep company... what is something I will bring... how will i personally make the test prep better?
any ideas?
thanks

Haha, isn't that something you should answer by yourself? 😛

For my prep company interview I emphasized how I am a very organized, visual learner, and how I would be able to present complex scientific reasoning to my students in a concise and memorable way. I think I also mentioned how I genuinely enjoyed teaching people and how I am a very sociable person, et cetera.

I think the best way to approach it is to come up with a canned response like the above, but during your interview, try to get a feel of what the company is looking for. Are they looking for someone who is great at presenting information to the students, or someone who can establish that personal connection that will give students a good feeling about the company in general?

 

[nonsciencemajor]

this is totally random... But I think Berkeley Review for MCAT is a better source of preparation as compared to Kaplan... anyways, go back to the discussion

 

[bobsmith]

I would find most MCAT science topics difficult to explain over the phone. I'm a very visual person so I need to see and draw pictures, diagrams, flow charts, etc. Probably a bio topic would be best since it mostly doesn't involve numbers, math, symbols, and how to "work out" a problem. Even then, I can't think of a good bio topic! I'll come back to this later, as in later tonight.

I'm a pretty visual person too and basically had the same thought -- I would advise against anything involving formulas because I imagine it would be a pain to talk out and explain formulas over the phone.

Since you probably want to go for something more conceptual, maybe something about hormones would be a good topic? Maybe talk about vasopressin and it's role in regulating water? To make it more interesting, you could even mention some stuff about common diuretics.

You should also pick a topic that you're very comfortable with because you want to be able to answer confidently if/when you get asked questions

 

[Misc]

I'm a pretty visual person too and basically had the same thought -- I would advise against anything involving formulas because I imagine it would be a pain to talk out and explain formulas over the phone.

Since you probably want to go for something more conceptual, maybe something about hormones would be a good topic? Maybe talk about vasopressin and it's role in regulating water? To make it more interesting, you could even mention some stuff about common diuretics.

You should also pick a topic that you're very comfortable with because you want to be able to answer confidently if/when you get asked questions

+1

I definitely agree that something concept-related in bio would be a good idea. What about the digestive system? You could talk about the enzymes, cell types, et cetera at each stage of the cycle, and it shouldn't take more than 5-10 minutes.

 

[FloatOn]

Ok, OP, I got a topic: prokaryotes vs. eukaryotes. Pretty simple stuff. Students should already have basic understanding of a cell, so 4 minutes could be a quick overview of the major differences. Or you could do membrane transport: passive vs. active. ATP, transport protein, all the fun stuff.

Honestly, 4 mins is not that long. Just make it concise yet coherent.

A friend of mine, who is a past teacher, told me the interviewer asks what I will bring to the prep company... what is something I will bring... how will i personally make the test prep better?
any ideas?
thanks

Think of all of your idiosyncrasies! Maybe you like making jokes a lot and using humor to help students learn. Maybe you come up with really unique analogies to remember details. Just ask your friends what personal things they like about you and make it relevant to the MCAT/teaching. That is what is going to make you stand out. It's already given that you're smart and responsible if they're giving you an interview for an MCAT prep course.

 

[Narmerguy]

Ok, OP, I got a topic: prokaryotes vs. eukaryotes. Pretty simple stuff. Students should already have basic understanding of a cell, so 4 minutes could be a quick overview of the major differences. Or you could do membrane transport: passive vs. active. ATP, transport protein, all the fun stuff.

Honestly, 4 mins is not that long. Just make it concise yet coherent.



Think of all of your idiosyncrasies! Maybe you like making jokes a lot and using humor to help students learn. Maybe you come up with really unique analogies to remember details. Just ask your friends what personal things they like about you and make it relevant to the MCAT/teaching. That is what is going to make you stand out. It's already given that you're smart and responsible if they're giving you an interview for an MCAT prep course.

Pretty solid advice. 👍