Rich

I completed a BA (Hons) degree in Russian studies, awarded from the University of Nottingham in 1995. During both my second and final years, a significant part of the academic content consisted of courses relating to French studies as subsidiary subjects. My final result was II(i) with a distinction awarded in spoken Russian.
I completed a secondary PGCE course in modern languages, also awarded by the University
of Nottingham in 1997.
In 2003 I completed a Cambridge CELTA certificate in teaching English as a second language
to adults, awarded by Oxford Brookes University.
I continue to study modern languages with enthusiasm. I also organise a Russian conversation evening in Oxford, which takes place once a month.

Willing to travel: 30 miles

Experience: In August, 2020 I began to teach Russian to a Year 6 student. This tuition was arranged via Home-School Tutoring. The student in question was entirely home-schooled at this point; an arrangement which continued for a further three years and one term. This was primarily due
to the fact that he found experiences in school extremely stressful, which was a consequence, in part, of his Autism Spectrum Disorder. I feel very grateful and privileged to have had the opportunity of working with such a student, and I quickly learned that my approach to interacting with him would need to be tailored quite differently from that which would be effective with many mainstream students. His Russian studies with me, which comprised both language and Soviet history, continued until July 2022, at which point he completed Year 8. Meanwhile, when he was approaching the end of Year 6, in July, 2021, his mother asked me whether I might consider teaching him French as well. As a consequence, he and I worked on French language for two hours per week until December 2023. The following term he was enrolled into a virtual school, which meant that the services of his individual tutors such as myself were no longer needed.

In January, 2022 I began working with a second student online, who was in Year 8 in
a mainstream school. She is now in Year 10, and we continue to work together with positive results, (albeit once a fortnight as opposed to once a week due to her increasing commitments elsewhere).

More recently, in January, 2024 I commenced in-person lessons with a Year 5 student. Once again, I was put in contact with this student via Home-School Tutoring; my work with the Year 5 student is also ongoing. He is on the autistic spectrum, and he has recently been diagnosed with ADHD. Despite the fact that he can, on occasion, display quite challenging behaviour, I feel that I have developed a very constructive working relationship with him, frequently incorporating the use of humour, and that he has been responding very positively to my approach. As it happens, both of his parents speak French, which means that there are frequent opportunities for all four of us to communicate in French when I am present in the home.

In terms of my teaching style, I am extremely thorough in terms of planning and preparing lessons. In addition, my approach to continuity from one lesson to the next is highly meticulous. I have found that students often appreciate consistent attention to detail in this respect.

DBS Check: Yes