Anna

My journey to teaching Mathematics was not straightforward. I studied Mechanical Engineering and started a career as a Designer of dams and other big hydraulic projects.
However, the theory behind the grand designs was always attractive to me, and I missed explaining it to others and continue in my journey of Mathematical discovery.
I will never regret getting my PGCE and embarking on my second career, teaching. More than 10 years in "real world", applying Maths, helps me to make Mathematics more relevant to students, not only highly theoretical concepts but also a range of applications that I experienced in real life settings.

Tutoring Experience

I have been perfecting the art of teaching Mathematics for over 20 years as a classroom teacher and on a one-to-one basis as a tutor.
Over the years, I have encountered students of wide variety of ages, mathematical abilities and lerning styles. Under my guidance, talented students flourished, expanded their knowledge and achieved top grades.
Those with less easy relationship with Maths, were helped to overcome their difficulties and secure the qualifications they needed for the next step in their education.
My greatest successes were those students, who decided to study Maths at A-level and at University, and on the other hand those with dyslexia or dyscalculia whom I helped to find their own way of conquering the subject.

Tutoring Approach

To achieve success, a teacher or a tutor needs not only solid knowledge of the subject but also have the ability to explain concepts in a crystal clear way. To quote Albert Einstein: If you can't explain it simply, you don't understand it".
A tutor must be flexible and imaginative to find not one but as many different angles and approaches as are needed for student's understanding.
It is all a part of experience to recognise weak and strong points in student's knowledge, anticipate, point out and resolve misconceptions and help the student to build a solid structure of knowledge, giving them the confidence in their studies and, ultimately, during their exams.
Most importantly, I like to lighten up the load and make learning experience personable and fun. It is possible to study Maths and laugh, as many of my tutees would testify.
There are scores of historical curiosities relating to individual topics or Mathematicians and students appreciate it hearing interesting details underpinning perhaps dry topic. This bings a new impetus and energy to learning, making the topic alive and memorable with an element of fun and discovery.