John

After twenty years of teaching, school leadership, teacher training and senior examining roles, I moved into a new role as an assessment policy specialist. I have experience of teaching in very-high-performing schools (both state and independent) as well as writing exam papers, setting the national standard for GCSE papers and writing the exam reports and support materials that your teachers use! I still run exam preparation days for local schools and work with teachers to review and improve exam performance.

I spend most of my spare time reading History, running in the fells, walking my dog and following the fortunes of Carlisle United.

Tutoring Experience

I taught both History at GCSE and A Level as well as A Level Government & Politics. I have been an examiner and coursework moderator with most of the major exam boards for over twenty years including experience as a principal examiner for Edexcel GCSE History. This means that I understand both how to teach the specifications but also how examiners apply the standards to the papers they are marking.

I ran an award-winning History department as well as having pastoral roles in schools and running school assessment systems. I’ve also lectured on two teacher training courses and worked with trainees as a university mentor. I have two Masters degrees: both History and Leadership in Education. I’m also qualified as a Level 7 coach and mentor. I am a published writer on school travel having organised and guided History trips to sites across Europe.

I’m also experienced in supporting applications to elite universities. I also have significant training and experience in supporting autistic students in these subjects.

Tutoring Approach

The whole purpose of tuition is to get the precise, individual feedback that is hard to deliver in the classroom. I take a ‘coaching’ approach to tutoring. This means that I will spend a lot of time getting to know your individual requirements and supporting you to learn about yourself as a student: where you can improve and how. In the background, I will spend a lot of time reading your work and providing bespoke solutions to any issues you are experiencing. So, we won’t waste time on generic teaching practices.
I am also happy to work out what sort of timetable suits you best. For some tutees a regular weekly slot for a few months is what they need to improve their performance across a range of different topics. For others, it can simply be that they want a fortnightly catch up to fine-tune their written work or to review their approach to coursework. I won’t waste sessions teaching you things you already know!