Several of my students have complained to me.

They’ve had tutors that try too hard, are just weird, or don’t listen or even just can’t teach.

When looking for a good gcse maths tutor, you don’t want that to happen to your child.

So here’s a list of things to look out for

Good GCSE Maths Tutor

1. The right amount of subject knowledge. Your tutor will know enough about GCSE Maths, but at the same time they will remember that they are teaching students who struggle with the subject. A good Maths Tutor is humble about their knowledge and still remembers how to explain things in simple, every day english…like using cupcakes to teach percentages ;)

2. A good maths tutor will completely customise the lesson, how things are taught and the work set for each and every student that they teach. Yes that is hard work, but it’s neccessary to make sure every student reaches their potential.

3. Good GCSE maths tutors have empathy and are hugely supportive. Some of my students have been through a lot, some suffer from terrible anxiety, but I always manage to get them to a better place. You can’t teach well without being a kind person.

4. Teaches more than the syllabus. A good tutor will teach life skills like being organised, being independent, studying for the right reasons and so on.

5. Exam technique. Knowing the concepts in gcse maths is not enough to get a good grade. The difference between a level 9 student and everyone else is usually the amount of exam practice they have completed. A good maths tutor will be able to show you to do exam questions, make sure you get enough practice and also a strategy on how to do the actual exam.

Bad GCSE Maths Tutor

1.Avoid gcse maths tutors who are so into their subject that they have no idea how to explain it simply. Also avoid maths tutors who only use worksheets after worksheets instead of teaching and explaining the concepts.

2. Bad GCSE maths tutors will use the same lesson plan for every student, without trying to understand them as a person and without considering what level they are working at and towards.

3. Bad GCSE maths tutors are terrible at undertstanding what their students might be going through. If you’ve hired a tutor who has no idea about parent pressures, peer pressure, anxiety/mental health, motivating young students, you need to keep looking…if your child is nervous or gets more anxious when the maths tutor comes, keep looking