Rebekah

I am currently undergoing my masters degree in ancient Roman history at Oxford University, and I hope to go on to do a doctorate in this field. My education has not only opened up many opportunities and prospects that otherwise would have been unreachable, but it has also offered me ways of viewing the world and approaching problems which have benefited my life immeasurably. To be able to pass this on to students, watching them develop, growing more confident and competent with each lesson, is incredibly rewarding for me.
Achieving a first-class honours in my undergraduate degree, I have found that my time at Oxford has left me with invaluable intellectual and self-management skills.
It has given me invaluable insight into the admissions process, for which I can offer specialised support and lessons.

Tutoring Experience

I have experience teaching children from primary school age, to tutoring university-aged students. My preference, however, is tutoring older students, aged 14-18, as I find this time of intellectual development particularly rewarding. I have experience with students with autism and dyslexia. I am familiar with the issues these can pose students, as well as systems in place to support them, as well as studying and teaching techniques they can find helpful.

Tutoring Approach

I believe that teaching always needs to be led by the individual needs of the student. As a tutor, I try to encourage independent thought. By asking them questions, I move students to form their own opinions, as well as find potential areas for improvement in their understanding. From there I prepare lessons and resources specialised to each students specific learning needs and goals.
I believe it is the role of a teacher not to give the student their views, but to give them the tools necessary to form their own. By encouraging debate, I help student begin to think in the argumentative terms necessary for excelling in exams. When even this is a challenge for students, I offer them different approaches and prompt them till they are able to form their own ideas. In my best tutorials, by the end the student is leading the discussion, as I chime in occasionally with a differing perspective or to help them work out the nuances of their argument.
As a tutor, I can offer insight not only into multiple studying and memorisation techniques, but also with dealing with stress and exam anxiety. I feel like as a tutor, it's important to keep an eye on the emotional well-being of students, offering support and guidance, as they experience such an incredibly stressful period of their young lives. Having worked in a residential summer school, I have experiences with raising safeguarding issues and am aware of signs of emotional and interpersonal issues. Should such indicators arise I view it as my responsibility as a tutor to privately inform parents so that they can take appropriate action.
Essay writing is a particular strength of mine and my favourite area to teach. One teaching method I find particularly effective is going through a students essay, highlighting areas of language, argumentation and structure that could be improved and then working with them to do so. Over the course of my undergraduate degree, I have written over 100 essays, thus this is an area in which I feel particularly confident in guiding students.