Educated at Oxford, Yale, and UCL, I'm a career academic (PhD etc.) with a long record of research and teaching in the Humanities.
Educated at Oxford, Yale, and UCL, I'm a career academic (PhD etc.) with a long record of research and teaching in the Humanities.
I've been teaching for over 25 years and tutoring privately for over 20 years. My principal subjects are History, Classical Civilization and English Literature. I focus on tutoring students at university and at A Level or IB.
My main focus is on developing a student's essay writing. The ability to structure and express clear and persuasive arguments is absolutely central to top-quality academic work in the Humanities, and also to a lot of future employability; but these skills are generally not taught. The result is that students often have quite a reasonable knowledge of content but are much less clear about what to do with it. I aim to close that gap partly in order to help students aim for higher-band marks in their current academic work and partly to give them increased confidence an takeaway skills that will remain extremely valuable long after their current studies are finished.
With under six weeks to go before History A level, Alex engaged with my son with a calm and well structured approach. The goal was to help my son improve the structure and clarity of his essay writing to aim for a solid B, which meant raising his existing marks around the C level. We engaged in about ten sessions with Alex over the period and he really strengthened my son’s understanding of how to aim for higher level marks and sharpen how he conveyed his history knowledge. The resulting B grade was a great relief and helped secure my son’s place at his Russell Group university. I would highly recommend Alex.
Tutor response
Thank you for these very warm words Rachel. It was a real pleasure to work with Ferdi. He brought engagement and good humour to those last few challenging weeks, and I'm absolutely delighted that this was reflected in his grade improvement and university entrance. I wish him all the best.
I find the tutoring sessions with Alex very helpful. He is clear, consistent and provides excellent feedback (both verbal and written) that allows me to intellectually elevate my essays.
Tutor response
Thanks for these warm words, Helena. It's a pleasure to work with you and I look forward to continuing.
Alexander has been very helpful. My son is now getting all the help he needs for his A level history this year. The lessons are improving his confidence and he is enjoying them.
Tutor response
Thanks Sharon. I look forward to continuing to work with Robbie. It's a pleasure to work with a student who shows such commitment.
I’ve been studying with Alex for 10 months in preparation for a Master’s in Shakespeare Studies. During this time, we’ve typically had hour-long sessions reviewing essays, including a 4000-word application essay on King Lear. These weekly sessions have helped me stay consistent and motivated with my course preparation. Alex has significantly helped me improve the argumentation, clarity, and sophistication of my writing. Alex is professional, knowledgeable, and encouraging. I would recommend Alex to anyone looking to enhance their essay writing skills. I’m very thankful for his help and have thoroughly enjoyed sharing and discussing my essays. We’ve covered a number of plays, spanning a wide range of topics and themes. For every essay, Alex has provided valuable feedback and helped me write essays I can be proud of.
Tutor response
Thank you for these very warm words, Morgan. It's been a real pleasure to work with you and I look forward to continuing.