Niamh

I am an Oxford University graduate in MSc Mathematical and Theoretical Physics and a double prize-winning Bristol University graduate, finishing first in the year in BSc Mathematics and Physics. I have been tutoring privately for 7 years from primary to university level. I have taught group classes, 1-1's and exam masterclasses to over 300 students all online. I have a huge success rate as a tutor and was the most requested tutor at Breakthrough Maths by students and parents alike. I love to spend time with my students, help them improve and get to know everyone I teach on a personal level!

Tutoring Experience

I have tutored privately from primary to university level for the past 7 years. I covered many syllabi in this time including GSCE, A-level, International Baccalaureate, Junior Certificate and Leaving Certificate (Irish schooling system). I can easily and effectively adapt my teaching style to suit different syllabi and students alike. I believe having taught various age groups, standards and syllabi has afforded me the ability to find the most effective learning method for each individual student.

I spent the last year working online for Breakthrough Maths, an Irish tutoring company who provides group mathematics classes from primary to secondary level. During my time there I was the most requested tutor in the company by parents and students alike. I designed and taught exam masterclasses online to final exam students where I had an attendance of over 300 students. Keeping the classes fun, engaging and entertaining is so important to me as a teacher, especially online.

Tutoring Approach

My approach to teaching varies from student to student in order to meet each individual student's learning needs. However, some key aspects to my approach are outlined below.

Creating a relaxed environment!
Tell me about your day and I'll be telling you about mine! I think it is so important to create a learning space where everyone is comfortable, relaxed and ideally having a bit of fun. I so enjoy the characters of each of my students and especially seeing my more shy students come out of their shell. To learn mathematics and science, we have to be willing to get things wrong, to try again and not care if one of our many approaches don't work. I want all my students to be relaxed enough to give everything a go and not worry too much about the outcome.

Back to Basics!
Often I see the biggest grade jumps when we bring things back to basics and get the fundamentals well within our grasp. So often basic algebra techniques get brushed over in school and without mastering these methods, we can't get over the first hurdle of many questions.

Exam Questions and Critical Thinking.
Being able to answer the questions in your textbook is one thing, but applying these techniques to applied exam questions which require you to show case your 'thinking outside the box' skills under pressure is a whole different ball game. In my teaching there is a huge emphasis on helping you develop an approach for tackling a question or a topic you have never seen before. This is vital for success in exams.

Giving context to your work.
My field is mathematical physics and I could talk about it ALL day. Something I really enjoy to do for my students is to contextualise their work. Why is it important? What is this actually being used for in real life? I can answer these kinds of questions and more because this is my field and is something I'm hugely passionate about. Motivating your learning is so important and is something I always give time to in my classes.