Gary

I am a qualified teacher of Mathematics offering tuition up to A-level, SQA Advanced Higher and beyond, delivered 1-2-1 and online.

As I see it private tuition in maths offers you the help, encouragement and support you need to increase your understanding of this important school subject, and should be seen as an investment in your future.

It is therefore my aim to offer a dedicated service to people who want to gain more confidence and skill in maths. I strive to deliver high quality tuition up to SQA Advanced Higher, A level and beyond. I specialise in:

• SQA Higher, Advanced Higher Mathematics
  
• Edexcel A Level Mathematics Pure Mathematics, Further Pure Mathematics
• International Baccalaureate SL/HL AA and AI
• STEP, TMUA, MAT for those intending to read Mathematics, or Computer Science at university
• 1st year of University Mathematics

From summer 2024 I am offering

• Maths enrichment for secondary pupils learn mathematical problem solving (the most important skill to learn in maths), and strengthen your existing mathematical skills and knowledge, helping you transition between GCSE to AS/A-level or N5 to Higher/Advanced Higher. Since this is a new course, I'm offering it at £30 for an hour-long session.

I enjoy using my ability to reason and try to pass on an appreciation for reasoning to the people that I am giving tuition to.

In addition to having worked in education I have also been employed in software engineering.

I enjoy sea kayaking, wild swimming, French cinema, playing backgammon, listening to music, watching TV.

NB Due to the number of tutees that have requested online tuition I am at present only able to offer a very limited number of times for in-home tuition.

Tutoring Experience

I have been offering private tuition since 2012 and have helped many tutees to obtain, or surpass, their target grades in SQA and A level exams. In the last 5 years I have delivered around 3000 hours of tuition!

My results (2013 - 2023):
A -- 40
B -- 29
C -- 33

In addition I have 4 years classroom experience, and have worked in providing adult education in computing.

Tutoring Approach

As a dedicated teacher, I enjoy teaching at all levels of ability, tailoring my approach to the needs of my tutees. Having a calm and patient manner I enjoy the challenge of helping tutees to understand basic principles in ways that make sense to them. Whether you need help with a specific problem or an explanation of a more general concept I'm here to help. Just let me know what you need assistance with and I'll do my best to provide a clear and helpful response.

Elements of my approach:

• review of basic maths
• practice of routine processes and methods
• discussion of how to approach A/B questions at higher/advanced level
• breaking down complicated maths to simpler ideas
• problem solving techniques
• encouraging you to have a questioning attitude in your study of maths
• exam technique
• homework and bespoke notes included in fees

Our aim is working towards creating a time and space where you can talk about and learn maths in a natural way. I ask my tutees to aim high and to that end the focus will always be on you developing as a confident learner.

Joan Boaler in her book Mathematical Mindsets states that “…for the vast majority of children — about 95% — any level of school maths are within their reach.” Further to the point, Nobel prize winner in Physics (1965), Richard Feynman: "I was an ordinary person who studied hard. There's no miracle people. "

With the right support and encouragement to think for yourself you are perfectly capable of learning maths and being able to obtain a good pass. So please take this on board and adjust your own mindset accordingly.

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For online tuition I use:

A MacBook Air, and an iPad Pro with an Apple Pencil.

Zoom (I have a pro account and can offer 1 hour without interruption) for screen sharing.

Explain Everything (an electronic whiteboard). It's good if you are willing to use the whiteboard to show how you would attempt solutions. One of the advantages of online tuition is that since we share the whiteboard you can see what I'm writing directly in front of you, as I can when you are writing. This means that I can provide commentary to your working; praise things you are getting right, and alert you to mistakes, in effect it gives me some insight into your strengths and weaknesses or misconceptions. The Explain Everything whiteboard also has a laser pointer and this makes it easy to point at and talk about the working on the screen and I encourage tutees to do this.

To aid in the development of understanding I encourage the use of Desmos, GeoGebra, Wolfram Alpha, ChatgGPT, and Graphing calculators (I have a Casio FX GC50, and a TI-Nspire CX II).

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Please enquire about discounts for small group study, and for payment in advance. These discounts when combined can reduce my tuition fee to £34.00 per hour for A-level/Highers

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Please ensure that you read my terms and conditions which include the details of a late cancellation charge. FEB 24: resource downloads not available at present. First Tutors are working to restore them. My main T&C is a late cancellation charge of £10 with less than 24 hours notice.

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Your data

As part of delivering online tuition to you or your family member, I collect certain personal details (contact and education related). I keep them securely on my computer and on iCloud. 

I have no need to share them with any other parties and therefore your privacy will not be compromised.

Any feedback that is shared publicly is shared in such a way that the identity of the individuals involved is not.