First Education

English tutoring is rewarding in a way that few jobs are. It is not simply about teaching students how to write essays or analyse texts, it is about watching someone gradually become more confident in their own thinking. Many students begin English feeling intimidated by the subject, convinced there is always a “right answer” they cannot find. Over time, however, tutoring allows you to show them that English is really about interpretation, creativity, and developing a voice. Seeing a student move from uncertainty to confidence is incredibly fulfilling.

What also makes English tutoring so interesting is that no two students think in exactly the same way. One student may connect deeply with poetry, while another thrives when discussing film, philosophy, or character relationships. Because of this, tutoring never feels repetitive. Every lesson becomes a conversation where different ideas and perspectives emerge. Texts that might initially seem familiar can suddenly feel new again when a student notices something unexpected about them.

English tutoring is also rewarding because the skills developed extend far beyond the classroom. Strong communication, critical thinking, and the ability to express ideas clearly are valuable in almost every area of life. Helping students improve these skills can genuinely shape their confidence at school and beyond it. Often, students begin by wanting better marks, but they leave with a stronger sense of their own abilities.

Perhaps the most meaningful aspect of tutoring is the relationships built along the way. Spending time helping students work through challenges creates trust and connection. When a student finally understands a difficult concept, writes an essay they are proud of, or achieves a goal they once doubted was possible, their excitement is shared by the tutor as well. That sense of progress is what makes English tutoring both rewarding and endlessly engaging as a tutor.

Lara Venn Jones

Over recent years, especially as a result of COVID and lockdowns, online tutoring has arisen as a convenient alternative to in-person tutoring due to its accessibility. However, when we look at this compared to in-person tutoring, is it really a better option than sitting down with a tutor face-to-face?

Online Tutoring
The flexibility and convenience of online tutoring are the two major positives when looking at online tutoring. You can remove travel times, meaning there is a wider range of options for session times, and the student can do the session from anywhere, whether this is at their house, at school or at the library.

In-Person Tutoring
The key benefits of in-person tutoring are both the physical presence and fewer distractions. A physical presence allows the student to receive more thorough feedback, where it is easier for the tutor to look at the work the student is doing in real-time, compared to the student doing the work and then having to show the tutor on a camera. This allows for immediate feedback, with the tutor being able to pick up on any mistakes or areas for feedback in the process, for example, when completing maths problems. This physical presence builds a stronger bond between the tutor and the student, building the student’s confidence over time.

In-person tutoring also removes the distractions of technology. The student is present at all times and is unlikely to be distracted by their laptop or phone.

What works best?
It really depends on the type of student when weighing up online tutoring versus in-person tutoring. A range of factors such as the age of the student, the subject of tuition, the student’s schedule and level of confidence. As an example, in-person tutoring may be more beneficial for younger students, as they can lose focus and engagement more quickly compared to senior students in Year 11 and 12. Overall, it is important to consider a range of factors, but in the long run, in-person tutoring will lead to more significant development in a range of areas.

Hayden McCarthy

Today I observed Demi working with her Year 4 student on Year 5 mathematics content involving improper and equivalent fractions. The lesson was very engaging and highlighted Demi’s ability to challenge her student while still providing the support needed to build confidence and understanding.

One of the strongest aspects of the session was how Demi introduced more advanced content in a way that still felt achievable for the student. Rather than underestimating the student’s ability, she encouraged them to step outside of their comfort zone and attempt Year 5 level questions. This created a positive challenge and helped the student feel capable of tackling more difficult work.

Demi explained improper and equivalent fractions clearly using simple language and visual examples. She used diagrams and fraction models to help the student understand how fractions could represent the same value even when the numbers looked different. This visual support made the concepts easier to grasp and allowed the student to connect the maths to something more concrete.

Another standout feature of the lesson was Demi’s questioning style. Instead of giving answers immediately, she guided the student towards the solution through prompts and smaller questions. This encouraged active thinking and helped the student build confidence in their own reasoning skills.

Demi also maintained a very positive and encouraging atmosphere throughout the session. She praised effort and persistence, especially when the student attempted more challenging questions. This helped keep the student motivated and engaged, even when mistakes were made.

Overall, Demi delivered a very effective lesson that balanced challenge with support. Her strong explanations, use of visual strategies, and encouraging teaching style helped the student build a clearer understanding of improper and equivalent fractions while also developing confidence in approaching more advanced maths content.

Demetria Koutavas

Observing Toby tutor a Year 7 maths student provided valuable insight into the importance of building trust and confidence with your student. The session was highly relaxed and conversational, I could tell immediately helped the student feel comfortable. Rather than rushing straight into difficult content, Toby spent time asking him about his week, what he enjoyed at school, the areas of maths he felt confident in this week, and the topics he disliked or found challenging. This created a supportive atmosphere where the student felt safe to admit when they did not understand something, rather than pretending to know the answer.

One of the strongest aspects of the lesson was Toby’s calm and encouraging communication style. He listened carefully to the student’s responses and adapted the lesson accordingly, ensuring explanations were clear and paced appropriately. The student appeared far more willing to ask questions because there was no pressure or judgement during the session. Toby regularly reassured the student that making mistakes was part of learning, which helped build confidence and reduce any anxiety around maths or asking for help.

Another effective strategy observed was the use of goal setting. Toby worked collaboratively with the student to identify specific goals for upcoming lessons and preparation for their assessment. Together, they discussed the key topics that required further revision and created a game plan to improve understanding over the next few weeks. I could tell this gave the student a clear sense of direction and made him feel less stressed about the amount of content to get through!

Overall, the observation highlighted that successful tutoring is not only about strong mathematical knowledge, but also about communication, patience, and relationship building. Toby created a super positive learning environment where the student felt supported, motivated and more confident in approaching maths challenges. He seemed really engaged and excited to come back next week!

Shyla Gloster

Today, I observed Mary and Katerina working together through a practice paper on dilations and related function questions during the lesson. Together, they worked through a worksheet that included a range of questions on transformations of functions, with a strong focus on translations and dilations. At the beginning, they started with more basic transformation questions, identifying how graphs shift when values are added or subtracted either inside or outside the function.

As they moved further into the practice paper, the questions became more challenging and focused more on dilations. Mary and Katerina worked through vertical dilations first, multiplying functions by constant factors and observing how this stretched or compressed the graph. Horizontal dilations required more thought, and they occasionally paused to discuss their reasoning, particularly around the idea that changes inside the function produce an opposite effect on the graph compared to what might be expected.
Some of the later questions involved logarithms, including expressions using log base e. They attempted to simplify these expressions using basic log laws, such as expanding products into sums and turning powers into coefficients. At times they needed to revisit earlier examples, but they gradually became more confident as they progressed through similar questions.
Throughout the lesson, both students made effective use of the available materials. They referred to their textbooks to check formulas and confirm examples when they were unsure, which helped them stay on track. The whiteboard was also used to work through selected questions step-by-step, allowing them to visualise the transformations more clearly and identify small errors in their working.
Overall, Mary and Katerina made steady progress through the practice paper. They demonstrated a developing understanding of transformations, dilations, and basic logarithmic rules. The lesson highlighted how combining practice questions with textbooks and whiteboard explanations can support understanding and improve confidence with more complex mathematical problems.

David Hanna

Most students who struggle in class aren’t struggling because they’re not smart. They’re struggling because something earlier didn’t quite stick, and the class moved on without them.

That’s where tutoring comes in.

The best thing about one on one tutoring is that there’s nowhere to hide, but also no need to. A student who’d never ask a question in front of 30 classmates will ask it when it’s just the two of you. That changes everything. You can actually find the gap, go back, and fix it.

The job isn’t to do the work for them. It’s to stay one step ahead of where they’re at and pull them forward slowly. Sometimes that means explaining the same thing three different ways until one of them lands. Sometimes it means going back further than you expected, realising the problem isn’t the current topic at all but something from six months ago that was never fully understood. Sometimes it just means shutting up and letting them think.

It’s not glamorous work. A lot of sessions are just sitting at a kitchen table going through problems one by one. There’s no audience, no big reveal. But the progress is real and you see it up close, which is more than most teachers get.

And occasionally a student will come in defeated and leave having figured something out on their own. That’s the whole point, really. Not that they got the right answer, but that they started to believe they could find it.

Justin Ho

Golden retrievers have cemented themselves as one of the most beloved dog breeds on the planet, and honestly, it’s not even a close competition.

First, the personality. Goldens are basically happiness in dog form. They wake up every single day acting like it’s the greatest day of their life, and somehow that energy is completely infectious rather than exhausting. They don’t have bad moods, grudges, or off days. You could be gone for five minutes or five hours and you’ll get the exact same ecstatic welcome home — tail spinning like a helicopter, whole body wiggling, possibly a toy offered as a gift because they just have to bring you something.

Then there’s their emotional intelligence. Golden retrievers have an almost supernatural ability to read a room. Having a rough day? Your golden will quietly rest their head on your lap without being asked. Want to play? They’re already halfway to the backyard. They seem to genuinely understand human emotions in a way that makes them exceptional therapy and support dogs — a role they’ve taken on across hospitals, schools, and disaster sites worldwide.

They’re also ridiculously versatile. Guide dog? Golden retriever. Search and rescue? Golden retriever. Family pet that tolerates a toddler using them as a pillow? Golden retriever. They adapt to whatever you need them to be, which speaks to a level of patience and good nature that other breeds simply can’t match.

And let’s not overlook the obvious — they’re gorgeous. That flowing golden coat, those warm brown eyes, the perpetual soft expression that looks like they’re always pleasantly surprised by life.

Other dogs are great. Truly. But golden retrievers operate on a different level of wholesome. They don’t just fit into your life — they make your life measurably, demonstrably better just by being in it.

Evan Mihail

Algebra is one of the biggest turning points in a students mathematical learning. Maths changes from simple arithmetic to abstract thought where the student is introduced to letters in maths and has to truely understand what they represent. The student goes from working with actual numbers to understanding variables, equations and patterns that are often challenging to see. This shift can feel overwhelming.

One major reason students struggle with algebra is due to weak foundational skills, they may have forget the rules to fractions of number facts thats are heavily required in algebraic techniques. These small gaps in there understanding quickly develops into something more concerning.

Another common issue is students have been conditioned to memorise but with algebra understanding why we do each step is fundamental for applying it to other often more challenging problems. When solving an equations there is not a simple formula which tells you what you must begin with you need to understand which variable would affected and why.

Algebra can be extremely intimidating to students when they are first introduced however it becomes much easier when the correct approach is taken. Students should begin with mastering the basics before introducing variables, strong arithmetic skills will make algebra significantly easier. Practicing mental maths, fractions and how negative numbers interact can quickly build confidence. This practice can then be applied with the algebraic questions.

Visualising the question can also help immensely, sometimes imagining a real life example that reflects the questions can allow the student to understand what is being asked much easier. This further allows the student to not simply rely on a generic formula that will most likely result in an incorrect answer.

Consistent practice like most topics is key, and for algebra it is essential. Understanding improves through repeated exposure and pattern recognition from questions you have previously done will improve your speed and accuracy exponentially.

Olivia Moustakis

Today, I had the great opportunity to observe Annabelle act as a cover tutor and teach year 8 maths.

During my observation, I watched Annabelle tutor a Year 8 maths student who was working on indices, algebraic expressions and solving equations. They appeared to be preparing for an upcoming assessment task so there was much importance on understanding certain concepts. As a newer tutor, she presented herself very professionally and created a welcoming environment for the student from the beginning of the lesson. I noticed that she was friendly and approachable, which seemed to help the student feel comfortable asking questions whenever they became unsure.

One thing that stood out to me was Annabelle’s ability to explain concepts clearly without overcomplicating them. When teaching indices, she broke down each rule step by step and regularly checked the student’s understanding before moving on. Rather than simply giving answers, she encouraged the student to attempt each question independently first and then guided them through any mistakes. This appeared to build the student’s confidence throughout the lesson.

I also observed how patient she was when the student struggled with algebraic equations. Instead of rushing through explanations, she used multiple examples and related the concepts back to previous questions so the student could identify patterns. Her communication skills were strong, and she maintained a calm and encouraging tone during the entire session.

Another positive aspect of the lesson was her organisation. She transitioned smoothly between topics and ensured the student stayed focused and engaged. I noticed that she balanced support with independence well, allowing the student enough time to think critically before stepping in to help.

Overall, the observation was valuable because it highlighted the importance of patience, clear communication and adaptability when tutoring students in mathematics.

Overall, this was a great lesson to observe and i commend Annabelle for her welcoming and approachable nature. Well done.

James Petrakis

Time management is an important skill all students need to develop. Students from a young age should learn this skill. Time management is the ability to plan how much time is spent on different activities so the entire task can be completed within a set time frame. Students need to learn how they can balance their time so they can maximise the marks they receive. They will learn that if they spend too much time completing one task, it will have a flow on effect and will also impact their ability to complete other tasks. They will learn how the mark allocation will help them determine how much time they spend on each question or task. Time management is crucial for all students to learn from a young age. In primary school, students get introduced to this idea when they have to complete a school task in a set amount of time. Students learn not to spend too long on a question they are stuck on as they may not finish the test. Students learn to keep an eye on the clock so they can effectively manage their time. They are also taught to leave enough time at the end of a test to check over the work. This allows them to make sure they’ve completed each question and it gives them a chance to fix any spelling or grammar mistakes. Throughout primary school students can practice their time management skills completing class activities. They can also practice these skills under exam conditions when they take NAPLAN, ICAS, OC and selective school tests. Students in high school also practice these skills when they complete exams and tests.

For students, effective time management is an essential skill as it helps them balance their homework, study, personal life and extracurricular activities. When students manage their time well, they are able to complete assignments and homework on time, prepare for exams, attend co curricular activities and still have time social activities.

Overall, time management is a crucial skill all students need to learn and apply.

Ashley Cohen