Daniel

Daniel is an inspiring Mandarin tutor with over a decade of experience. He supports all levels, from beginners to those studying Mandarin at university. Daniel is a patient and engaging tutor, who tailors each of his lessons to the needs of his students.

Daniel teaches: Undergraduate & Graduate Chinese, English as a Foreign Language (EFL), Mandarin, Motivation, Exam Preparation and Study Skills

“Daniel is a very attentive tutor who consistently encourages me in class - which I appreciate as someone who struggles with linguistic confidence - and takes the time to patiently explain troublesome words and concepts. I always feel very happy when studying with Daniel.”

Graphic Designer Student

About Daniel :

Experience
Biography
Approach to Tutoring
When not tutoring

Experience

• Mandarin Language Tuition

• GCSE Mandarin (all exam boards)

• A-Level Mandarin (all exam boards)

• And Scottish equivalents

• English as a foreign language

• IELTS

• BEC

• CET

I specialise in Mandarin Chinese tuition for U.K. based students and clients.

In China I studied Mandarin to fluency. I worked as both a home language tutor and, later, as Senior Content Writer & Course Designer for a major Chinese educational publishing house.

After returning to the U.K. I established my own Mandarin tutoring business. I take students from absolute beginner all the way through to undergraduate level including major exams for all exam boards.

Biography

I am an alumnus of Project Trust, the University of Leeds and Beijing Capital Normal University. I was born in Suffolk and, after almost a decade of moving between China (Beijing, Zhangye, Xian) and the UK (Edinburgh, Leeds, The Isle of Tiree, St Andrews), have finally settled in Inverness with my partner.

Approach to Tutoring

My approach varies from learner to learner based on their individual needs.

My experience as a tutor of 11 years enables me to confidently take charge of the learning process and, drawing on my experience as a Course Designer, create classes and materials tailored to the individual needs of each of my learners.

Initially, I ask targeted questions to ascertain each learner’s educational needs in studying Mandarin. I design courses and materials according to their responses – this then forms our learning plan, which can be explained to the learner if necessary.

When not tutoring

I now live in Inverness; therefore, it is almost essential to be a keen hillwalker.

Outside of working hours, history is my main academic interest. As such, I read extensively on Chinese, Russian, and German modern history – this is particularly the case in the dark Invernessian winters!

Creatively, my main passions are photography, acting and comedy writing.

What clients say about Daniel :

“Daniel helped my daughter with her English studies. I work at Sony so I speak some English but it was not good enough to help my daughter with her homework so Daniel helped a lot. His Chinese is fantastic, and my daughter understood everything very clearly. Thank you.”

Father of 11-year-old

“After being overwhelmed with coursework and homework when starting my course Daniel helped me to both make sense of a confusing new language and enjoy the process of learning it. Each week during my first semester we had two sessions. Daniel prepared content specific to my course and so I have no problem in recommending him to others.”

First Year Undergraduate

“After two months of studying, my oral language has made notable improvements. I have developed a deeper appreciation for the meaning of the words in my vocabulary, as opposed to just simply being able to recite the words as is the case with other tutors.”

School Teacher in China

“I work in a Chinese restaurant. I felt disconnected from my Chinese colleagues. I took classes with Dan to integrate more with my workmates. This was very successful. I felt that the sessions were very beneficial to my career and happiness at work.”

Previous student