Tutoring provides learning experience

Greenbrier High School senior Josh Inouye is working toward an A on his senior project and along the way, is helping other students to succeed.

His research paper focuses on technology and math education, but seniors also are required to show what they know by producing a product or putting their knowledge into practice.

Josh, the son of Mark and Sandra Inouye, is coaching Greenbrier Middle School math pupils.

"It's different than working with your peers," he said. "I have to try to figure out how to teach them on their level."

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Josh goes to the school Monday afternoons to help the pupils work through a sheet of algebra problems.

"My parents had the idea for me to work with mathematics and Math Counts. I'd been heavily involved in it when I was in middle school," Josh said. "My dad used to be a coach and thought it would be good for me to try that."

Josh has been working with the team since November to prepare them for the Math Counts competition, which was last Friday. The competition has three rounds: an individual test involving critical thinking and problems solving; a team round in whichpupils answer questions within a time limit; and a countdown round in which pupils go head to head with other teams to see who can answer questions the fastest.

The team didn't place in the top four, but math teacher Sheila Francoeur said she wasn't too discouraged since this is the first year the school has fielded a team.

"The kids enjoyed having him there, he's somebody they can look up to, not an adult or a teacher telling them what to do," Francoeur said.

Josh said he would like to study to be in an engineer when he graduates, but also has an interest in medicine. He plans to attend Johns Hopkins University or Georgia Tech.