Alice

Experience

• 7+ English & Maths: public school entrance exams

• 8+ English & Maths: public school entrance exams

• 11+ English: ISEB and public school entrance exams and pre-tests

• 13+ English, History & Religious Studies: ISEB and public school entrance exams

• GCSE/IGCSE English & History: AQA, CIE, Edexcel and OCR

• 16+ English & History: public school entrance exams

• A-level/IB History: AQA, Edexcel, OCR and IB

• A-level Politics: AQA and Edexcel

• A-level/IB English Literature: AQA, Edexcel, OCR and IB

I am an Oxford-educated tutor who has taught at top independent schools, including my alma mater, James Allen’s Girls’ School (JAGS), where I was part of the marking team for the 11+ entrance examinations, and Wellington College, where I gained experience of the International Baccalaureate through teaching and helping to develop course materials for the Middle Years Programme (MYP). I have taught History in schools across a broad range of age groups, from Year 8 to Year 13, as well as AS/A2 Politics. I was chosen by my head of department at Wellington to deliver the AS History side of the Easter revision course, receiving enthusiastic feedback from the pupils, all of whom were studying different historical periods, and who went on to gain excellent results. I also developed and offered Oxbridge preparation seminars for the Oxford History Aptitude Test (HAT) and for Politics, and conducted mock interviews, resulting in successful applications from my pupils to courses such as Modern History at Oxford and Politics, Psychology and Sociology at Cambridge.

I have undertaken a range of tutoring roles over the course of my career in education so far. As well as offering History and Politics, I have also tutored English for several years. I have helped many 11+ and 13+ students to win places to leading independent schools by increasing their enthusiasm for and confidence in English. For pre-tests, I recommend building up a thorough knowledge of the 11+ English syllabus and focussing as much as possible on comprehension, grammar and cloze procedure. I use a variety of activities to help students adapt to the time-pressured nature of the tests and develop problem-solving skills. I have also guided a wide range of GCSE, A Level and IB students to achieve their best possible performance in the subject. My top performance in my own A Level studies in English and my continuing interest in the subject have enabled me to approach English tuition with the same confidence that I bring to the teaching of my degree subjects.

Biography

I attended James Allen’s Girls’ School in London, where I obtained top grades in my A Level studies in English, History, Politics and Philosophy and was awarded the Harvard Book Prize for my academic performance. I studied for a BA degree in History and Politics at the University of Oxford and went on to take a Master’s degree in Philosophy. I became a teacher of History and Politics at leading independent schools before moving into private tuition.

Personal Approach

I welcome the focus on the individual learner that is a central feature of tutoring, and very much enjoy engaging in the lively dialogue and individualised feedback that enables tutees to grow in confidence as learners. I bring enthusiasm and energy to my tutoring. Thanks to my work as a school teacher, my approach to tutoring is also informed, where relevant, by a sound understanding of the assessment requirements for public examinations and school entrance examinations.

What I do when I am not tutoring

I enjoy engaging in voluntary work, and have contributed to the educational programme at Only Connect, an arts charity seeking to rehabilitate ex-offenders. My greatest passion outside the classroom is music. I also love to travel; London is still my favourite city, though, and one of the things I love most about living here is the range of museums and galleries to explore.

My recent blog posts

24/11/2016: Preparing for the Oxford History Aptitude Test (HAT)

01/08/2015: Book, line and sinker: fostering a love of reading

Testimonials

"I got a 2:1 in my dissertation. Thank you so much for your help. I wouldn't have been able to do it without you!" (BA Comparative Literature student)

"Both girls got an A* for their Politics - thank you! They agreed that you helped hugely with nailing their exam technique - we are all so grateful." (Mother of A level Politics students)

"Thank you so much for your help. She has learnt so much from the lessons with you." - Mother of A Level Student

"Yesterday my son received an offer to read History at St Anne's College, Oxford. I just wanted to say thank you for your help and advice. He's extremely happy. Thanks again." (Mother of Oxford History applicant)

"First and foremost, thank you! I got an offer for interview from Oxford! I am sure many of your students get one, but I am immensely grateful because I know without your tuition on the HAT it quite likely would never have happened. So again, many, many, many thanks for the help you provided. I hope other Oxbridge hopefuls are lucky enough to get your help." (Oxford History applicant)

"Alice has been a fantastic tutor so far. I very much enjoy our sessions, and I have certainly got better at the LNAT over the last few weeks. I would thoroughly recommend her." LNAT Student.

My son has improved so much in history thanks to your very professional tutoring. He has been offered places at LSE and UCL to study history. He has enjoyed the sessions immensely and from a parent's perspective I consider it money well spent. (Mother of A level History student)

My son said he really got a lot out of today’s session. He is much enjoying his tutorials (Father of A level Politics student)

In the event that we need more online lessons, we will definitely be contacting you and Keystone. I thank you for your time on behalf of the girls as they enjoyed your lessons very much (Father of 13+ English students).

"My son said Alice was Fantastic & that he feels that what she taught him will have put him up a grade." Mother of A Level History student.

''Alice is an excellent tutor. She had a great rapport with my son. He was able to develop his powers of argument and analysis through discussing Philosophy topics with her. Alice was well-organised, diligent, dedicated and rigorous. She has been instrumental in helping him achieve his 'A' grades and his place at Bristol University to study English and Philosophy.'' (Mother of AS/A2 student)

''My son said that you had helped a lot, particularly in helping him to know how to think through his answers at interview. He enjoyed his sessions with you and they gave him a lot of confidence. Thank you very much for all your help.'' (Mother of Cambridge applicant)

''Thank you so much for the session last Sunday with my daughter. You did such a great job and she now has much more confidence to continue the essay alone. I have told the agency how much she benefited from your help.'' (Mother of GCSE student)

''Just wanted to let you know that my son did extremely well in RS! It seems he got top marks in each section - 60 was noted for each exam and he got an 'A'! Many, many thanks.'' (Mother of AS student)

''Just wanted to take this opportunity to thank you so much for the help you have rendered my son. He is beginning to enjoy history!'' (Mother of AS/A2 student)

''My son has really enjoyed your sessions and we would like to book more for the Christmas break. I know you are going through his AS work, which is so useful to keep it fresh. He will benefit from your skills and input for his A2s as well.'' (Mother of AS/A2 student)

''Just wanted to let you know that our son has been offered a place at Westminster Under School from September this year (which we have obviously accepted)! This is a great result with our first choice of school, so thank you for your help in achieving this.'' (Father of 7+ pupil)

''I just wanted to let you know that my daughter got an offer from 6 of the 7 schools she applied to, including Godolphin! She will be going to Godolphin next year. Thank you for your help, which I am sure contributed to her success.'' (Mother of 11+ pupil)

''Thank you so much for the time you have spent with my daughter. She has found it very helpful.'' (Mother of AS/A2 student)

''As I have mentioned many times over, I am so glad to have found you to help my son with his history. Thanks ever so much again, Alice.'' (Mother of AS/A2 student)

''Many thanks for your patience and teaching all this while. I have truly enjoyed studying history under your guidance.'' (AS/A2 student)

''Once again, many thanks for your patience and kind help with my son's studies.'' (Mother of AS/A2 student)