Thurnby Tutors & Thurnby Tuition

Personal Description:
As a Private Tutor, I am fully committed to teach and assist students of diverse needs and abilities to develop and attain the highest possible achievement in their academic career.

Teaching Experience:
I have over ten years' experience of teaching Science at KS3 & GCSE and Biology at 'A'-Level. I also have over fifteen years' experience as a Lecturer in Applied Biology at various universities in the UK, Nigeria and South Africa. I have been a Private Tutor to many students at various stages over the last six years.

Tutoring Approach:
Imaginative, enthusiastic, innovative and committed, are four words that would briefly describe my skills as a tutor. I always acknowledge my students' personal expectations and strive to create a positive learning environment that leads to their success.

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Personal Description:
I am Spanish native speaker, friendly and approachable person who loves teaching and find it very rewarding. Having learnt other languages I can identify myself with the students I teach.

Teaching Experience:
I have been working and enjoying teaching Adults and children for 10 years. I am a qualified Spanish teacher from Brighton University, currently teaching Spanish in an Adult College at different levels, supporting Spanish GCSE in secondary school and teaching Spanish to young children at nurseries.

Tutoring Approach:
The teaching method I use vary according to the students needs and knowledge of the language, the main goal for students is usually to speak and communicate well with the Spanish speakers. In the lessons the four learning skills (listening,writing, reading, speaking) are implemented to develop student's confidence. Cultural aspects of Spanish speaker countries are part of learning a new language.

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Personal Description:
When I was a boy I was taught by people who were larger-than-life characters who dominated the classroom. They made clear to us boys what was expected of us and that if we didn't make the effort we would simply not achieve the rewards.

As a teacher, I share the same ethos. I expect pupils to follow my lead and work to the best of their ability.

I spend a lot of time reading and thinking.

I think it was George Bernard Shaw who said that 2% of people think, 3% think they think and 95% would rather die than do any thinking at all!

Sadly, I think that over the last thirty years dumbing down and inflated grades have shown how accurate Shaw's assessment was.

I see my role as one of reversing the tide of apathy and mediocrity and encouraging pupils to value themselves as individuals each with unique potential.

I finally achieved my educational potential because I came to see intellectual growth as the only sure path to happiness and fulfilment.

Helping pupils reach the same understanding about their full intellectual potential is my vocation and the foundation on which I build all my one-to-one tuition relationships.

Teaching Experience:
After teaching in the UK Primary and Secondary sectors as well as managing English and History departments in three international schools overseas, I now devote my time exclusively to private tuition.

My experience includes 12 years teaching English and History to GCSE and A level in the UK secondary system and eight years teaching the same subjects to the same levels in international schools in Italy, Egypt and Kenya.

During this time I have always had a number of students on my books for home tuition to provide extra help in Primary, Secondary and University level subjects.

My English GCSE students last year all achieved A-C grades and my A level History student achieved an A (predicted C after Year 12) and is now at university. In previous years, my A level History students have never achieved less than a C and in 2014, I had a student who reached A* and is now studying the subject at Exeter University.

Tutoring Approach:
My experience has led me to believe that one-to-one tuition is the best way to educate pupils. It brings them to the realisation that the whole point of education really is to set us free. It's not easy for a student to discover this when confined every day in a class of 30 or more others! Learning to think independently as an individual, and to read and write fluently enables pupils to participate fully in society, to achieve their full potential and thereby become happy, confident adults. Once the student is enthused and inspired by a tutor to think for themselves there is only one way forward.

I like to encourage pupils to develop independent thinking and logical analysis. Too many schools are teaching the children WHAT to think when they should be teaching them HOW to think. Naturally, many pupils become disengaged and even some of the most talented are simply going through the motions rather than actually studying. This lack of motivation together with highly inflated grades means that many of our youngsters are leaving school with minimal reading and writing skills. Indeed, few now have the aptitude for doing much reading, thinking or writing at all.

I like to build up the student's confidence by establishing their strengths first. Thereafter I identify weaknesses and gauge the student's awareness of them and motivation to put them right. Above all, I encourage my students to read widely and with full concentration. My best students learn to read closely and publish their reviews on Amazon. Aside from the huge adrenaline run, the boost in confidence and proficiency students get from seeing their writing in print is awesome to behold!

To put it simply, when they're reading they start succeeding!

Homework set weekly by me will always involve reading, thinking and writing. My feedback will always concentrate on reinforcing the idea that the writing process never ends with the last full stop. I expect students to read back their work to ensure that their writing communicates their meaning clearly and fluently. Editing with the focus on making the right word choices, organising sentences with the words in the right order and structuring longer writing assignments into coherent paragraphs are all priorities schools are increasingly neglecting thereby greatly hindering the life chances of their pupils..

Once the student and I have agreed which areas need improvement we use lesson time to extend the student's competence and skills by undertaking thinking and written assignments that allow the student to develop these.

Weekly homework set will advance and reinforce the skills the student has been encouraged to bring to the lesson.

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Personal Description:
Hi my name is Debra and I live in Gunnislake.
I graduated with an MFA in Fine Art at Wimbledon College of Art in London and have a degree in painting and, diploma in art and design.

I specialise in portraiture and figurative art and drawing. I've also worked with iPad painting. My preferred medium is oil and acrylic, charcoals and pencil. Much of my work is done through direct observation and I stress to students, the importance of this. Observational work strengthens the eyes, memory and confidence in what we are looking at, enabling a better observational record. Therefore, plenty of practice, ultimately reaps rewards.
I am passionate about what I do and regard drawing and painting as a form of self expression.

Teaching Experience:
I have eighteen years experience within the Early Years sector.
4 years Private tutoring experience

Tutoring Approach:
I am an extremely motivated and positive person and believe that anyone can be taught to draw. Healthy doses of discussions, listening and the exchanging of ideas is a key component in cultivating the creative mind, alongside plenty of encouragement and positivity. Constructive criticism is also very important and this part of exchange should be delivered with positivity to maximise a productive way forward for the tutee.

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Personal Description:
Hi, I'm Lucy and I am a mum of one, teacher and lover of all things French! By nature, I am diligent, reliable and good-humoured and love my job as a French teacher. I have lots of experience in dealing with young people and tutor on a regular basis.

Teaching Experience:
I have 20 years experience as a teacher and have taught French to all age groups and abilities, from toddlers to adults!
I have always given private tuition, an aspect of teaching that I particularly enjoy. I tutor both on a one-to-one basis and to small groups. I currently teach French to little ones through music, drama and games - there's never a dull moment!

Tutoring Approach:
I assess the student's requirements at our first session which is free. I also like to get to know a little of his/her personality which I consider paramount in order to develop a good rapport from the outset. I try to pinpoint as early as possible the area of difficulty and work on this as well as having an all-round approach to the language. Above all, I always try to be attentive towards my student.

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Personal Description:
Approachable, patient and thorough tutor with an outstanding feedback record stretching back to 2009. I am a qualified Chartered Accountant, working as a financial accountant at a large property and casualty insurer in the City of London. My Father was a Mathematics teacher in London for nearly forty years, which is most likely where I get my boundless enthusiasm for these subjects from! I work very hard to make the delivery of subject material as clear, interesting and precise as possible. Rather than just spoon feed a formula, I go back to first principles and explain in simple terms why a particular piece of theory works and where it came from. However, I do not just talk constantly and let the student sit idle. Success in Maths, Accounting and Economics requires problem solving skills, so in order for the sessions to be beneficial I need the student to engage with me and to attempt questions (with my supervision) when they have enough accumulated knowledge to do so. I fully understand how stressful school/university can be and as such the sessions are not intended to be "just another school lesson", or to put vast amounts of pressure on students: the ultimate aim is to develop a strong working rapport whereby the student feels comfortable, secure and can feel a sense of achievement from their work.

*** Feedback testimonials from previous students/parents can be provided as far back as 2009.

*** I teach Sixth Term Examination Papers (STEP I, II and III) and AEA also ***

*** AVAILABLE TO TEACH IN SUMMER HOLIDAYS***

*** TEACH ONLINE OR IN PERSON, EITHER AT STUDENT HOME OR MINE ***

Teaching Experience:
I have 17 years worth of private tuition experience teaching Mathematics, Business, Accounting and Economics courses that begin at Key Stage 3 (Years 11-14), through GCSE, AS & A2 level to first and second year university courses in accounting, mathematics and economics. Whilst at university I also volunteered to take part in weekly workshops where students could come and ask questions in a relaxed, informal atmosphere about homework or problems that they simply were unable to make any headway with.

I teach the following courses for GCSE, A Level and University:

Mathematical Methods (Core / Pure)
Advanced Mathematical Methods (Core / Pure)
Statistics
Decision Mathematics
Mechanics - A Level only
Microeconomics
Macroeconomics
Development Economics
Labour Economics

I am well versed with all the requirements of the major UK examination boards, as well as an understanding of what universities are looking for in exams and coursework.

For those of you that are interested in becoming an Actuary or indeed would like some tuition for the exams set by the Institute of Actuaries, I am able to teach the following courses: CT1 - Financial Mathematics, CT3 - Probability and Mathematical Statistics, CT4 - Models, CT7 - Economics.

For those of you that are studying Accounting & Finance, I teach the following courses:

Financial Reporting
Financial Accounting
Taxation
Management/Cost Accounting
Corporate Finance
Business Law

I am well versed with the requirements of the major UK boards for ACA and CA, such as Institute of Chartered Accountants of England and Wales (ICAEW) and Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland (ICAS).

I also teach AAT (all Levels), ACCA and CIMA courses.

The above list is not exhaustive so if require assistance with another course please do not hesitate to contact me for more details.

Tutoring Approach:
During the first session I present a short questionnaire that I ask the student to fill in (honestly!) in order for me to assess their individual learning styles (right brain vs. left brain, use of visual stimuli etc), so that I can respond best to their needs. Every lesson will begin with an outline of the subject content and the intended aims. The key to success in maths and economics is to do it! With that in mind, the vast majority of lessons will entail methodically working through problems and exam style questions to ensure my students are as well prepared for their modules as possible. However, exam success isn't the only concern; I want to nurture and develop a genuine love for Mathematics, Accounting, Business and Economics; one that will encourage the students to read widely and explore new avenues of thought.

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Personal Description:
My name is Dr Andrew, I have a doctorate in Psychology from Bangor University, where I used behavioural experiments to investigate the funcational signature of integration between social inferences and body perception.

I have experience spanning many domains of psychology, including a deep understanding of scientific writing practices and contemporary inferential statistics.

Teaching Experience:
Hundreds of hours teaching psychology in higher education: running classes, seminars and drop-in sessions for a variety of modules.

FHEA (Fellow of the Higher Education Academy) awarded by Advance HE. Fellowship status signifies professional recognition for my experience teaching and supporting learning in higher education.

Ample experience writing and editing scientific papers to APA standards.

Tutoring Approach:
Skype/Google/Teams for face-to-face discussion, and/or detailed comments through track-changes in Microsoft Word. Depending on specific requirements I can prepare materials (e.g. example data to demonstrate statistical analyses).

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Personal Description:
The need to acquire advanced knowledge in business administration drove me to start a Doctorate in Business Administration, after obtaining an MBA and a 1st class management degree.

Having worked in varied industries like information technology and real estate, I am now using my knowledge in business and management studies for the improvement of students.

I am a conscientious individual with a high emotional intelligence and an appreciation for cultural diversity, having studied and worked internationally.

Teaching Experience:
I teach GSCE business studies and economics as well as modules within business management such as marketing, financial management, accounting, HR, leadership, business strategy, for undergraduate, diploma, BTEC and adult education.

Besides modules within business and management, I teach tourism management, having studied tourism as part of my degree.

I also have a professional qualification in Galileo Global Distribution System (GDS) and can teach modules on it.

I Taught fellow students a range of business and management modules during the second and final year of undergraduate degree.

I Tutored MBA colleagues on ways to work through case studies at business school.

I Taught teenagers and kids business computing in a charity organisation.

Currently teaching students that studies at Glasgow Caledonian University accounting.

Currently tutoring a student who studies at West College accounting

Tutoring Approach:
Lecturing style, using real-life examples to explain theories

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Personal Description:
I have a bachelors and masters in psychology, a PGCE and am currently a trainee psychologist.

Teaching Experience:
I have 8 years of teaching and tutoring experience.

Tutoring Approach:
A student centred approach, adaptive teaching, guided learning, discovery learning.

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Personal Description:
I am a diligent and hard-working student who enjoys bringing new facts and contents into the minds of other people and adore helping, developing someone else's potential by sharing mine. As I am full of wonder, I relish taking an adventure within the study of almost any field and I aim to spread this positivity and my knowledge through teaching and mentoring students in an innovative way. I serve friendly behaviour and bring upon an optimistic attitude to any task, am very responsible and organisational, manipulate skills developed from hobbies, am self-disciplined and persevered to reach any goal, am punctual and balance between work and leisure. I get along well with a wide range of age groups from my social activities, tutoring experiences and my position as the second eldest in my family, I have spent a long time taking care of my younger siblings. I have been remarked as organised, polite, altruistic and supportive when I aid others from any perspective.

As I love helping others in struggle and to support others to reach higher goals, I have taught various age groups, held responsibility as a School Ambassador and School tutoring, volunteered to be a Reader Leader who helps those who struggle reading and understanding the story with success. I aid in writing model answers for GCSE & A-Level exam questions as well. From these experiences, not only have I built responsibilities and punctuality and polished my competencies but those who I mentor have developed their own self-esteem, confidence and perseverance to fulfil their own aspirations.

I am someone who has academically succeeded highly with 11A*s and 1 A in my GCSE subjects and am predicted to get 4A* in my A-Level subjects this summer 2021. I have been awarded many times for UKMT, Chemistry and Physics Olympiad challenges. Not only am I determined to excel greatly academically but I enjoy hobbies that are based on creativity: DIY craft and art, piano, dancing, sport, ballet. I am also fluent in English and relatively fluent in Korean with a basic level of French language.

Teaching Experience:
I have taught various age groups from 5 to 18.

I have conducted my past tutor sessions based on creativity of my hobbies such as art, which always worked absolutely well. I tutored very young children outside school who lacked motivation, in Sciences and Mathematics since when I was a GCSE student. I have many experiences working with children, especially with spending my work experience as an assistant in a primary school class, I was able to deal with various situations to keep the children calm, focused and motivated. In these instances, I aimed to ensure that they understood all aspects of the content, therefore, embedding simple terminologies and associating similar example situations for comparison to ease the hard contents. Nonetheless, I was very tolerant of any issue during the online teaching and was strongly resilient for full engagement.

I volunteered as a tutor for students aged 8 and 12, I was responsible and was relied upon to plan the meetings via emails where they suited their best learning time in advance. I utilised my organisational skills to collect resources and investigated various methods of teaching to find the most efficient way to deliver difficult contents. Hence, especially for biology, I altered the way I presented the resources so they suited the students' own learning attitude appropriately. I evolved my communication competency whilst discovering the students' difficulty and preferred revision methods, also.

As a school tutor during my A-Level studies, I have tutored GCSE students for Mathematics. I applied my patience to introduce difficult ideas carefully. In the cases for tutoring mechanics, my tutee found it difficult to identify and link various components of the forces together and to grasp the content clearly. Thus, I investigated the source of this lack of understanding then gave a clear explanation and support. Afterwards, I managed to explain various application questions using the struggling contents and interacting with my tutee (ie. asking what the next step would be) as I went through the questions to expand his understanding. I shared my method of working out the questions logically and giving clear guidance helped him greatly, hence, I was able to see improvement in his speed of understanding and solving of the questionnaires, showing a transition in his grades in Mathematics.

Tutoring Approach:
My mentoring sessions are carried out in innovative ways to find the best route for my mentees.

My mentoring sessions are carried out in innovative ways to ensure all aspects of the content is understood (ex: embedding simple terminologies and associating everyday situations for comparison to ease the hard contents), are full of collated useful resources and present them in the most appropriate way for individual's own learning styles, are delivered with tolerance and patience at all times. My teaching methodology becomes flexible to appropriately suit the individual's learning styles to efficiently carry this tutoring session forward. However, my basic format of teaching is always going through the struggling content to make sure the understanding of it becomes clear then is based on questionnaires in-between going through the content or (application) questions to check upon the students' understanding then involves various interactive activities (ex: quiz, mix-match, ...) to engage the learning. I always work towards finding the best route for my mentees. Through my tutor sessions, my tutees always develop their confidence, self-esteem and their competencies.

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Personal Description:
I was born in Glasgow, and attended The Glasgow Academy. I have travelled to over 50 countries, and explored new cultures and languages. I have a degree in Chemical engineering, holding a PGCE in secondary Maths. I played cricket for 2 years with Scotland.

Teaching Experience:
I explore critical thinking with my students, and encourage them to be logical and systematic in their approach to answering questions. I am also an experienced GCSE external examiner. I have worked in Africa and the Gulf countries for 10 years, teaching the equivalent to GCSE mathematics.

Tutoring Approach:
I like students to take the lead and set their own targets. My job would be to guide and modify any planning laid out. Furthermore, I will integrate English into solving higher level context based questions pertaining to real life situations. Master the basic skills with practice and slowly develop the art of solving problems. This will allow students to use the same method to all subjects.

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Personal Description:
After qualifying as a teacher from Oxford University's specialised teacher training college I entered business and have held many senior positions as Commercial Director (e.g. Wembley Stadium) and Chief Executive of medium to large business mainly in the service sector. Complemented with 6 years experience as a global management consultant with Deloitte Consulting, one of the "Big Four" global firms.

I moved into Higher Education as a both a Senior manager (Director) at the University of the Arts London and subsequently as a Lecturer at the University of Kent (Visiting Fellow in Entrepreneurship).

I have 3 grown up children and I live in the UK.

Teaching Experience:
I qualified as a teacher of English and Drama from Oxford University's specialised teacher training college. My teaching experience started with developing executive training programmes in Finance and management assisting a group of local Chief Executives of small businesses. This developed my interest in teaching and I subsequently took a role as Visiting Fellow in Entrepreneurship at the University of Kent in Canterbury UK. At the same time becoming an adviser to the UK's national Body promoting Entrepreneurship (the NCEE).

In 2017 I took a teaching role in China as Business Teacher in the International Baccalaureate curriculum a the Canadian International School of Hefei also teaching business related programmes in the New Brunswick Canadian Curriculum to students aged 16 to 18. I subsequently became Head of the Humanities department and left the school after 8 years, in 2025.

I currently tutor -on line- one of my previous students.

Tutoring Approach:
I believe every individual has their own way that they find easiest to learn and absorb most easily and part of being an effective tutor is to identify the learning style of students and this is achieved through careful listening, observation, discussion and modes of work (speaking, writing, drawing) etc). In the IB the overall approach os concept based learning where students are helped to develop tbeir own powers of deduction, reasoning and problem solving and this is my approach to tutoring (and teaching). On a practical level this means alot of discussion between me and students leading them to develop their own answers as much as possible to business options, issues and questions. In this way I find students retain what they learn. A blend of teaching methods helps to keep the lessons engaging and interesting. For example sometimes I will provide a ppt and use this as a discussion point at other times discuss a piece of written homework. I would characterise my approach as patient, creative and practical with the theory explained in some cases based on my own business experience.

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