Meet Our Tutor Berk!

Berk is a tutor at Hub21 Virtual. Literature, history, and economics are some of his main interests, and he loves spending his time reading. In this article, you may find inspiring answers from Berk to the questions we asked to know more about him.

Why do you spend your time teaching with Hub21?

Teaching has been of my biggest ambitions for many years, the joy of sharing and learning together with different people is simply priceless. However, it is always challenging to be able to adapt, evolve, and improve when the topic is teaching. To be able to create impact, you need to have the means to do so. Teaching with Hub21 has made me feel that we are actually able to create an impact and have good influence on many individuals since the beginning. This feeling takes the experience of teaching to another level, and to be able to see the constant development of students is an amazing journey.

How has teaching to code with Hub21 impacted you?

Before mentioning anything, I would like to start with the amazing people I have met in Hub21. From the very first moment I was involved in Hub21, every second that I have shared with other people has been nothing but exciting. I do believe that who you spend time with is sometimes a lot more important than what you do, and I have met incredible individuals here. As a complementary situation, learning and development never stop at Hub21. The constant feeling of improving alongside great people is one of the biggest motivations. I have collected many memories with Hub21 so far, and I am looking forward to many others; and to me, having such lovely memories is the greatest possible impact.

What are some of your teaching principles or strategies?

Teaching and learning are not opposite actions, they can only have meaning when they are combined together. This is and has been one of my core principles from the very beginning. The moments you share with a student is always mutually interesting and open for new possibilities, I cannot even list or count how many times I have learned something new from my students. As a tutor, when you consider yourself a student at the same time, and if you are able to make your students feel the same way, many boundaries diminish between the two groups. This allows students to be a lot more open and encouraged, while the sense of fun and sharing becomes a lot more tangible. Furthermore, it allows you to create an environment where everyone is able to experience building something “together,” in other words collaboration becomes possible and it cannot be denied that these are some essential parts of any educative process.

What do you do outside of teaching with Hub21?

Currently, I am pursuing a double major in Istanbul University, fields being English Language and Literature, and Political Science and International Relations. Literature, history, and economics are some of my main interests, and I love spending my time reading. In addition, it is a great experience to see how these fields evolve and change with technology, and to observe how they interact. And there is music, which is just like breathing to me, wherever I go and whatever I do, music follows me.

What are the funny moments you’ve had with your students?

It is always fun and surprising to see different tools. But when a student connects to a session in the form of a potato or a superhero, it is even more exciting. It was lovely to see how students started exploring different tools on the internet and adapted to them. With online meetings being a fundamental part of our lives, it was extremely fun to see how students were using different camera tools to shapeshift, lovely moments that were shared.