I first started tutoring some of my fellow students in Philosophy during my second year at University and greatly enjoyed helping people improve their understanding of the subject and gain higher marks. Once my degree was completed I began tutoring A-Level students in Religious Studies and Philosophy in the Leeds area before re-locating to Brighton. So far all my students have improved their performance by at least two grade boundaries following tuition with me.
My role as a private tutor is not only to help the student understand the concepts involved in the A-Level but also to gain the confidence to discuss those concepts in an analytical manner. Religious Studies and Philosophy are disciplines that greatly benefit from one-on-one tuition due to the complexity of the issues. In large lesson groups individuals can easily become confused and aren’t always able to receive the instant feedback needed to further explore the subject matter. As a tutor not only do I expand students’ knowledge base but also engage students in a positive way with the subject. If students have been finding a subject difficult their enjoyment of learning can become affected and they can lose the motivation needed to gain a broader understanding. By showing enthusiasm for my subject and using relevant examples and discussion points I reintegrate fun back into learning about the subject.
During my time tutoring Religious Studies, Philosophy and Ethics I have noticed how easily students can lose confidence in their abilities, which at times can be a barrier in their learning and means their exam results are lower than hoped. By encouraging students to ask questions, looking at what they are doing right and breaking down topics into their simplest formulation, I help the individual gain confidence in the subject and the skills to answer questions fully and receive a higher mark in exams. By using my own set of resources including readings, notes and revision sheets I am able to provide a service to my online students that is as complete as if they were having tuition face to face. I find with online tuition it is imperative to build a good relationship and make sure that students have fully understood the lesson by asking students to verbally recap the lesson and setting regular essays and tasks. I have worked with students with a broad range of abilities, from those that need some extra help to reach their full potential, to those that aren’t in mainstream schooling and as such don’t have any previous knowledge of the subject. Some students are very visual in their learning, others are very shy and need a lot of encouragement to speak, and there are others who are extremely capable if you ask them the right questions. Using a range of resources I can tailor a programme of study to suit each student. The potential of tutoring can only be maximised if each student feels comfortable in lessons, so I actively try to cultivate a good working relationship with each student. After all, if I were not enthusiastic and passionate about the subject it would be impossible to motivate any students to be enthusiastic about it! So far most students have improved their performance by at least two grade boundaries following tuition with me, with a high proportion gaining A*, A or B grades in their exams.