Richard

I am Richard; I have taught academic psychology at all levels (GCSE to degree to postgraduate to fun 'self-help' psychology) since 1994. I have been an Examiner and Senior Examiner for AQA since 1997, most recently on GCSE paper 1 (8182/1), AS paper 1 (7181/1) and A Level Paper 2 (7182/2-as a Senior Examiner). In each case I have consistently received excellent performance gradings from the board (and its predecessors) over the last 27 years.
After 20 years (last ten as head of department at an OFSTED 'outstanding' Sixth Form College) I semi-retired in summer 2015 to become self-employed.

I have been a successful private psychology tutor since then (see tutee and parent feedback on this site) at all levels- I am happy to take on students who are studying the AQA Psychology specification for GCSE, AS and A Level, though I will consider candidates pursuing the Edexcel spec ishould space allow. I can also offer practical and creative help and advice with UCAS and Postgraduate applications.
My wife Alison is also a retired Psychology lecturer - we have been together for 30 years. We are both Accrington Stanley FC season ticket holders. I have also contributed hundreds of reviews of classical music recordings and books for Musicweb-International over the last decade.

Tutoring Experience

I taught GCSE, AS, A Level and degree level psychology at Blackburn College, Lancashire 1995-2015, becoming subject leader in 2005. I built a vibrant, popular and successful department over this time enabling us to achieve unprecedented success. Moreover psychology became the most popular AS and A level subject at Blackburn under my stewardship.
I have been a self-employed home tutor for nine years now, working primarily with GCSE, A level and degree students. I have helped them achieve outstanding results; indeed they have regularly exceeded their own expectations. I continued to offer these services online during the pandemic - during that period I was also frequently asked to advise tutees on matters regarding UCAS and Postgraduate course applications. Indeed since the pandemic the bulk of my tutoring has tended to be online. Among my successful tutees in 2024 were a couple of individuals from the same centre who both achieved A*; both intend to pursue degrees in Psychology, one at the University of Oxford, the other at Leeds.

Tutoring Approach

Whilst I am profoundly evangelical about my importance of my subject, as an experienced examiner I am also deeply aware of the very specfic, almost unique exam skill-sets required to tackle GCSE, AS or A Level papers in Psychology - regardless of the specification. My focus is very much on instilling full understanding of each sub-topic, which is then reinforced with dedicated and intensive work to ensure every tutee develops a robust exam technique.
I want every student to have complete confidence in their ability to express complex ideas clearly-this is without doubt the key requirement for success in Psychology A Level and GCSE exams..
I also have a CELTA ESOL qualification which frequently proves useful for those students whose first language is not English. The point here is that clarity of expression is arguably the most important characteristic required for effective exam performance at ANY level in academic Psychology.
An important feature of my approach is to set relevant assessment practice for students which they can then submit online- I then provide clear, practical and detailed written feedback. This comes at no extra charge.
I recognise that students' tuition and support needs are changing all the time -not least in the aftermath of the pandemic - I am extremely flexible so please feel free to ask if you have specific tuition requirements..