Matt W - Tutors - Keystone Tutors

I am a specialist A Level Politics teacher with over fourteen years’ full-time experience, currently teaching a large and academically strong cohort at Radley College. I hold a PhD in Political Science and have also taught UK Politics at university level.

My work focuses on improving essay performance. I help students produce clearer, more structured and more evaluative answers, with a strong emphasis on argument, use of examples, and meeting the demands of top-level mark schemes. I work with students across the full ability range, from those securing core grades to those aiming for A and A*.

In tutoring, I work directly with students’ recent answers, identifying where marks are being lost and modelling how to improve them, so that progress is visible in their next piece of work.

Alongside my teaching, I lead whole-school teacher development and critical thinking, giving me a detailed understanding of how students learn most effectively and how this translates into improved exam performance.

I have over thirty years’ teaching experience across the state sector, independent schools and higher education. I hold a PhD in Politics and early in my career taught UK Politics and related subjects at Brunel University and Oxford Brookes University, alongside foundation courses for students preparing for degree study.

After completing my PGCE at Oxford University in 2005, I worked as a teacher and Head of Department at Wood Green School in Oxfordshire, where I established and developed A Level Politics and also taught GCSE History.

Since 2012, I have been a full-time Politics teacher at Radley College, where I teach A Level Politics and lead on whole-school teacher development.

Alongside my teaching, I have published subject-specific and academic work in Politics Review and the journal Representation, and my work on anarchism is cited as recommended reading in McNaughton’s Political Ideas textbook.

I begin by understanding where a student is now and identifying the factors limiting their progress. The first session is often diagnostic, allowing me to determine whether the main challenge lies in subject knowledge, revision habits, essay writing, examination performance or confidence. Once we understand the cause, support can be focused on the areas most likely to make a difference.

• Diagnosis and strategy: I use discussion, recent assessments, written work and questioning to build a clear picture of a student's strengths, weaknesses and study habits. This helps us identify the most effective route forward rather than relying on assumptions about what is going wrong.
• Building secure knowledge: where knowledge retention is limiting performance, I help students organise, retain and retrieve information more effectively, ensuring that understanding can be recalled under examination conditions.
• Essay writing and examination performance: I work directly with essays and assessments, helping students develop clearer arguments, stronger evaluation and more effective use of evidence. The aim is to make improvements visible in subsequent work and assessments.
• Developing independent learners: alongside subject-specific support, I help students improve the way they approach studying. This includes confidence-building, revision habits, planning, organisation and mindset, enabling them to become more effective and self-sufficient learners over time.

When not teaching full-time or tutoring, I enjoy reading both fiction and non fiction, and am a huge fan of Doctor Who. I also enjoy getting outside, spending time walking (usually accompanied by my two miniature dachshunds), and unwinding with films and television.