Martyn

I read English at Clare College, University of Cambridge, and have a BA and MA from Cambridge; twelve years later, I was on secondment from my London school, and took an MA, in Media and Film Studies for Education (passed, with distinction), at the London University Institute of Education. I also have a PGCE, which I took at the Department of Education, Cambridge University, the year after completing my BA.

Since retiring from teaching in schools, and have worked as a private tutor. I have an up to date (August, 2023) Enhanced DBS certificate (the old CRB), and I am registered with the Disclosure and Barring Service, to have this automatically updated every year.

Tutoring Experience

Before retiring I was a head of department at a Kent girls grammar school; before that, for seven years, I taught at a high school; and before that, for twelve years, I taught at a mixed comprehensive, in Newham, London. While working in London, I also taught two EFL adult evening classes, at West Ham College. During my time in London, I was in Singapore, 'on exchange', teaching English at Singapore Chinese Girls School. While there, I also gave lectures to sixth form A Level students at one of the junior colleges.

I have taught all secondary age groups. For more than ten years, I also worked for AQA, working first as an Assistant Examiner (A Level English Language and Literature, and GCSE English Language and English Literature), and then as a Senior Examiner.

Tutoring Approach

Since retiring from school teaching, I have enjoyed teaching one to one, and working closely with parents and guardians. I try to be flexible, and to take into consideration what the students are doing at school, rather than running a parallel sequence of lessons that might conflict with what is being done at school. If a problem has arisen in school during the week, that is what we will address; if the student is having difficulties with a homework set that week, that is what we look at. Most of my students are at KS4 or KS5, and most of my work has been with students preparing for the GCSE, IGCSE, GCE and IB examinations. I have helped them with all aspect is of their examination preparation (I have worked with students preparing for AQA, Edexcel, OCR, and Eduquas examinations, GCSE and GCSE, though most are AQA). In addition to more 'general' examination preparatory work, I have worked with A Level students on coursework; I have helped a large number of students redraft their UCAS Personal Statements; and I have worked with students preparing for the BMAT. I have also worked with university students, both undergraduate and postgraduate: undergraduate students studying English, Drama ('Ben' from EastEnders, when he was in his last year at university), Media and Film, Geography, Photography, Criminolgy and Business. I have helped them edit dissertations, etc., and I have halped a number of post-graduate students: a mature student working on a marketing MA dissertation; an English Literature student doing her MA.