Maggie

Experience

I am a qualified teacher for German and French and have taught (in schools, at university and language centres) and tutored hundreds of students on a one-to-one basis.

- German at all levels (all exam boards)

- French at all levels (all exam boards)

- SAT German

- Extensive English-as-an-Additional-Language (EAL) experience, especially for students who applied for schools in the UK

All of my students achieved their set goals. I have an outstanding knowledge of various different teaching strategies and have gained teaching experience with all age levels, from beginner to high achiever. Not only have I tutored French and German, but I have also been able to provide help with subjects that are being taught at KS2 in prep schools in Germany and the UK. Furthermore, I have taught in schools, at university and in language centres in different countries around the world, i.e. in Canada, England, Germany and Switzerland.

Plenty of my tutees have been able to obtain scholarships for Eton and Harrow as they worked under specific guidance focusing on exam skills.

Those ones who I supported for their GCSE, A-Level and IB exams passed with excellent results, ranging from A* to B.

I have worked as a private tutor in a tutoring agency in Germany and I have taught German beginner and advanced classes in the German Department at St. Francis Xavier University in Canada.

Due to my experience of teaching French and German in various countries, I have lots of classroom and one-on-one experience with a wide range of age groups.

Biography

I grew up in Germany where I went to Stiftsgymnasium Sindelfingen and took A-Levels in German, English, French, Maths and Geography.

After finishing secondary school, I attended classes at the University of Stuttgart where I studied English, French and Politics. I graduated with a first state exam (equivalent to Bachelor of Honours). During my studies, I was able to experience studying abroad and travelled to St. Xavier's College in Mumbai where I attended a course, which was taught in partnership with my home town university in Stuttgart. I also studied at St. Francis Xavier University in Canada, where I attended classes but was also given the opportunity to work as a language assistant in the German Department.

As I studied politics at university, I was involved in local politics in my hometown, amongst others being the first female chairwoman of the youth party. Furthermore, I was given the incredibly amazing opportunity to work for an MP in the German Parliament which I did whilst still finishing my degree.

When I came to the UK, I first worked as a language assistant at Felsted School for one year. Afterwards I did a PGCE at Oxford University. Whilst doing my PGCE, I was offered to help students at the Oxford Language Center where I tutored and supported students from all over the world. After finishing my PGCE, I returned to Felsted School where I worked as a fully qualified German teacher and gained plenty of experience teaching KS3, GCSE, A-Level and IB classes as well as being a tutor in a girls’ boarding house.

Since leaving Felsted School, I have been working as a full time professional language tutor all around London and worldwide, teaching students either in person or online.

Personal Approach

As a French and German tutor I often hear my students say that learning languages is very hard and knowing English will help you to get around in the world.

However, even a little knowledge of another language can make a difference in attitude when one meets people from other countries. Speaking another language helps to break down barriers and helps to build confidence.

My approach to tutoring French and German is very systematic. For me it is crucial to ensure that the foundations of the language are well established, i.e. taking a rigorous approach to grammar, sentence construction and vocabulary building. I like using authentic materials like newspaper articles, songs, movies, accident reports and interviews, which make my students curious and acquiring a language becomes fun rather than just a difficult task.

What I do when I am not tutoring

I love researching child and young adult psychology, focusing on literature on how best to help different children learn. I find this a fascinating subject and love the challenge of understanding the needs of all different children and young adults that I teach. I have attended a workshop at Harvard Graduate School of Education with the title ''The Opportunity of Bilingualism: Serving Today’s Young English Language Learners'' and I finished a further education course on Psychology (''Psychology in the real world'') at the Institute of Continuing Education at the University of Cambridge.

Throughout the school year, I volunteer as a career coach for the charity My Big Career where I support students from disadvantaged backgrounds with career support.

Furthermore, I am involved in the national tutoring sector, having acted as a Director for the National Tutors’ Association (TTA) as well as a TTA Regional Hub Leader for Central London.

Whenever I have some spare time, I love travelling and snorkelling in different places all around the world.

Testimonials

"Maggie, has been a remarkable teacher to work with. She is extremely well organised, encouraging and sets the bar high. She is immensely patient and constantly supporting the students to improve their German skills. It was impressive to see how well prepared she was prior to each lesson. She has managed to instil a love of the subject in our son." (Mother of 13+ student)

Thank you very much for the fantastic tutoring you gave my daughter. It is

rare to find such a good teacher, and we saw a great improvement in

her German ability. Hopefully she will keep up her German skills

and be able to put them to good use in the future. We are also delighted

with her GCSE results and with the confidence that she will have

developed. She initially felt that she had no aptitude for German, and

the experience of having worked hard to achieve the proficiency, despite

feeling she did not have the aptitude was an important lesson.

Our daughter really enjoyed her lessons with you and thought it took her to another level of how to approach German. We are delighted to inform you that she has been offered a place at Highgate, our preferred choice of school.

(Mother of student who applied for Sixth Form colleges)

Thank you so much for for teaching our son. He thoroughly enjoyed his lessons with you and found them very beneficial, which is fantastic." (Mother of French GCSE student)

Our son received an A grade in German so we were very pleased and relieved! Thank you so much for all your help, it was much needed and came at the right time. (Mother of German GCSE student)

''I got an A* in the German IGCSE exam, which I am very pleased about and am sure I would not have been able to achieve it without your help so thank you very much and I hope you have a nice summer.'' (IGCSE German student)

''I have been accepted to King’s and City. I also got accepted in St Paul's and Westminster as a boarder! Thank you once again for your support and for always believing in me!'' (Student who worked on 16+ German entrance exam with me)

''This is just a brief note to let you know that Blythe received an A* in her French GCSE. I wanted to personally thank you for your good efforts and support in making this result possible. Considering that she had so much ground to cover when you began, this is an excellent result.'' (Father of French IGCSE student)

''Roma got an a star - thank you for all your help in achieving this.'' (Mother of German IGCSE student)

''Benjamin was delighted to learn that he achieved 12 A* grades, including French. Many thanks for you excellent teaching.'' (Mother of French IGCSE student)

''The girls are undoubtedly benefitting from your lessons and enjoying them very much too. We're very pleased with their progress and grateful for all you are doing.'' (Mother of year 7 and year 8 students.)

''Thank you for all your support. It is like you have swung a magic wand and transformed Claudia's attitude towards German. She enjoys your lessons very much and has decided to take German in her GCSE exams.'' (Mother of year 8 student)

''Max thoroughly enjoyed his lessons with you and he found his lessons very beneficial, which is fantastic. Many thanks again Maggie you were great!'' (Mother of French GCSE student)

''India says she loves French and wants to get really good at it. She really did enjoy her lessons with you and I'm sure we'll be back in touch in her holidays Maggie for refreshers-thank you so much.'' (Mother of Common Entrance exam student)

''Ben received an A grade in German so we were very pleased and relieved! His results have been pretty good on the whole board as he got A and A *. Thank you so much for all your help, it was much needed and came at the right time.'' (Mother of German GCSE student)