Steve

Having taught Physics for nearly 20 years as Head of Physics, Head of Science and Assistant Principal, I now tutor full-time online. I can help you to understand and enjoy physics, and then reach the success you are looking for in exams. I have successfully taught thousands of students in the classroom and thousands of hours online.

Students of all abilities, from the very best, to those who find physics challenging, perhaps even overwhelming, have reached grades they thought were beyond their reach with my tutoring. If you take a look at my testimonials you'll hear first hand from some of the students I've tutored and some parents too.

I have taught all exam boards including international exams and I make sure I keep fully up-to-date with any developments in courses. I have developed a vast collection of resources to support you in reaching your very best.
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Outside of teaching I love to cycle and clocked up over 6000 miles last year and I'm crazy enough to go wild camping even when it's snowing. I have a daughter and two sons of my own so I understand the family dynamics that go with preparing for exams, though at 25, 24 and 21, mine have now moved on from school (phew!). I also enjoy playing guitar which often seems to go hand-in-hand with physics: I'm told that Einstein was a pretty good on the violin!
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Contact me today. Let's have a discussion about how I can support you in reaching your goals in you physics course. We could start tutorials this week!

Let me leave you with some recent feedback:

[Rhea, achieved grade A*] “Steve is an exceptional tutor, who not only recovered my confidence in studying Physics, but made every lesson exciting and enjoyable. His passion for physics shined through in every lesson, and he has a way of explaining the most difficult concepts in the A level syllabus in the most memorable and easy to understand manner. The massive step up from GCSE physics to A level Physics was something I was not quite anticipating. However, through weekly lessons with Steve and continued support throughout the week from him sending addition exam style questions and resources to practice with, I managed to boost my grade from a B to an A* in my year 12 exams.

It is said that Physics is one of the most difficult subjects to study at A level, but through weekly online tuition with Steve, Physics became the subject I felt most confident and prepared for. Tutors like Steve are extremely difficult to come across and I am so grateful to have found someone who can support me through the Physics A level, and would highly recommend him to anyone who may be looking for support studying Physics. With his kind, friendly and helpful nature, I am sure anyone would benefit from tuition with Steve.”

[Sam, aspiring for a place at Cambridge (June 2022)]
"Steve did a great job preparing me for my A-level physics. Aiming for the A*, the topics we covered were explained clearly and in addition, provided me with useful exam techniques. Every lesson was followed with a plethora of practice questions to help hone the content we covered in the tutorials. I felt well prepared for my exam and upon completion I feel that I have achieved my target grade. Thanks Steve!"

[Parent of A level physics student (June 2022)]
"My daughter wasn't at all confident with her physics so we turned to Steve who helped her regain both her confidence and her love of physics. I highly recommend Steve as he was both inspirational and engaging. My daughter scored A* in her physics mock and we're looking forward to the final result.
My daughter is now even reconsidering her university course - she may change to Physics :-)"

Cameron, Student
"Steve was absolutely fantastic as tutor. Over the course of year 13 Steve transformed my physics from a D prediction to me gaining an A in my final A-Level exam! Steve has a friendly approach to tuition and his enthusiasm for physics is infectious. Steve not only dramatically improved my knowledge and understanding for physics but also my confidence in my own ability to be able to recognise and successfully answer all types of questions. I cannot recommend Steve enough as a tutor! Thank you Steve."

“Hi Steve. He did particularly well in physics and got a 9!!! Thank you so much for all your help and support. It is very much appreciated.”

"A grade A in physics. I got in to my first choice university so I'm so happy!"

[From student's mum] "She got an A in physics - we're all in shock! Thanks so much for all your help tutoring, we're convinced it made all the difference."

"Thank you very much for all of your time and support...I got a C in physics :). It was a pleasure to work with you and can't thank you enough!" [Asad retook physics A level having first received a U. The C grade secured a higher level apprenticeship with Rolls Royce].

“Steve proved himself an inspiring and motivational tutor: unfailingly punctual, highly-organised, well-prepared, and extraordinarily generous with his time. His insistence on hard work and on completing set work on time quickly established the point that there is no short cut to a good grade in A level Physics.”

Tutoring Experience

"Steve was Head of Science at Holgate School when I was the headteacher. He's an excellent teacher." Phil Crompton

I'm not just a tutor, I'm a real teacher!  I gained my PGCE teaching certificate in 2000 and have taught physics for the past 20 years in three large UK schools.  My classes consistently performed well above the expected level, to the delight of the students, parents and school.  My most recent A level exam class achieved the best physics results that the school has ever seen.  Physics A level classes are usually taught by two teachers; with this class I shared the teaching with a young teacher who was once my student when I taught her A level physics!

I have taught GCSE and A level physics throughout my career, progressing from Head of Physics to Head of Science and onto Assistant Principal.  Having discovered that tutoring allows students to make fabulous progress, I have moved on from school teaching to tutor full-time.  In a school, many physics teachers will only teach each part of the course once each year, and a teacher may not teach some topics at all for several, or even many, years.  However, I now teach every part of the course at least twenty times every year!  This has enabled me to finely tune the delivery of each aspect of the course to maximise the understanding and progress of the student.  Ofsted (school inspectors) consistently recognised my lessons as being outstanding and I have since developed even better expertise to teach in a way that enables students to fully grasp each aspect of A level or GCSE physics.

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I really enjoy supporting tutees to achieve more than they thought possible. If you take a look at my testimonials you'll hear first hand from some of the students I've tutored and some parents too.  I make sure I keep fully up-to-date with developments in course curriculum and I have developed a vast collection of resources to support you in reaching your very best.

Often my students have been recommended by their friends who I've tutored.  Sometimes students are reaching for top grades so look for support to reach this goal.  Other times, students have found me when their results were in need of rescuing and together we’ve worked hard, gained understanding and reclaimed confidence.  This has led to great progress with positive experience in tackling exam questions and has ultimately resulted in consistently strong results.  You can find out more from the students themselves in the testimonials section.  I always find myself eagerly looking forward to results day and I hope that you will be too.

[DEPUTY HEAD TEACHER OF PRIVATE LONDON SCHOOL] "Steve worked with our school to support a group of Year 12 physics students. Our students found his sessions interactive and engaging, and they made very good progress in his capable hands. His methods for teaching online are sophisticated, and ensured all the students were given the opportunity to grapple with problems. Steve has excellent physics knowledge and is a highly able practitioner"

Tutoring Approach

The old saying goes that you learn from your mistakes.  But I didn't learn to drive by crashing cars.  Whilst I got to know the clutch and maneuvering, a very experienced and knowledgeable instructor corrected me with instant feedback, so that I developed the skills to do things the right way, rather than merely repeating my mistakes.  And the better I became, the more I enjoyed it.

I can steer you through your physics course, making sure that you progress with the understanding you need.  You'll grasp the concepts, enjoy the progress and reach your very best in exams. 

Online tutoring provides a powerful learning experience as I have access to all the resources that I need to share (diagrams, past questions etc.) and I always provide follow up consolidation work.  During the tutorial we'll pack in explanations and examples so that you grasp the concepts firmly and then move on to expressing the new learning effectively in past exam questions with guided support.  I'm happy to steer us through the learning needed for your course, or for you to identify the areas you'd like to focus on then I can take a lead.  Perhaps it works well to keep pace with the learning at school or maybe there are areas which you haven't grasped well that need reviewing.  Together we'll rapidly work through the material to identify the parts which need work then we'll focus on these to ensure that they are mastered.  You'll gain a thorough understanding, and cover lots of practice questions to ensure that you are ready to achieve your very best when it comes to exams day.

In order to improve your exam performance I work through the aspects of the course material with which you are struggling, as well as focusing on exam technique in a way that builds confidence as ability grows.  There isn't a wasted moment in my tutorials, but that doesn't mean they aren't fun and inspirational.  Getting you engaged in the tutorial ensures that you will be challenged at the right level, you'll enjoy the learning and you'll achieve the success that your hard work deserves.

Whilst you'll be able to find less expensive tutors (and more expensive ones too), they may lack my direct teaching experience or a complete grasp of the whole course, for all exam boards, including international qualifications.  I have motivated hundreds of students through A level Physics exam courses (and many more through gcse courses), many of whom have attained A and A* grades.  I have a thorough knowledge of exam technique and preparation skills.  I have also been the exams officer at my school, so I have a great working knowledge of the procedure from that point of view as well. I can ensure that you have a clear view on what is required to gain full marks in each question and this means I can thoroughly support you with exam preparation to ensure that you reach the best grade possible.  

Contact me today and we'll have a chat about how I can support you in reaching your very best in your physics course.