First Education

Today, I had the privilege of observing Demetria and the Year 10 Maths student. There were 3 things in particular that stood out to me during this session.

Firstly, Demetria’s strict but considerate attitude. She consistently made the goals of the session clear, remaining focused and being transparent both with her instructions and behavioural expectations. This attitude helped set the atmosphere for a successful lesson.

Similarly, the interplay of technology and non-digital means used throughout the lesson. Knowing her student had been previously distracted by his laptop, she opted for a combination of handwritten activities and questions as well as using his device for consolidation.

Finally, Demetria’s guidance and words of encouragement. At all points in the lesson she continued to uplift and support her student even if he struggled. This nurtured an environment for growth while also allowing for the student to become more comfortable coming forward with any areas of difficulty.

Katerina Vrahnos

Whilst the student I was supposed to cover for did not show up, I still learnt a lot about tutoring through an observation. I am still quite new to tutoring at first education, as this was supposed to be the second time I tutored someone, so I found that this observation was really useful. I sat in on a Year 9 Maths Tutoring lesson, and they were learning financial maths.

One of the key things I learnt from this lesson was the importance of consistently encouraging the student being tutored, especially when they get a question wrong, and congratulating them when they do something right. This was really good for the student as it prevented them from becoming frustrated, discouraged and not wanting to learn anymore, especially when they are so close to getting it right. Sometimes they need the extra push!

Another thing I noticed the tutor doing was highlighting and emphasising the formulas. They did this both when the student did not quite understand the question and even if they got the question. This is helpful as it ensures that it is reinforced in the students’ heads and that they will not forget it. Further, the tutor also explained how the formula worked and the logic behind it. I found that this was very beneficial as it helps the students to deepen their understanding of it, and therefore, they will be less confused and less likely to forget it. If the student still was not completely confident, they reinforced their understanding through worked examples, or through explaining it in another way.

Altogether, I learnt a lot from observing the year 9 maths class, which, especially as a new tutor, will help me to work to the best of my abilities moving forward.

Katreen Diab

The second student I was booked to cover for also didn’t show up, and I did a second observation, learning different things from watching a different tutor. I am still quite new to tutoring at first education, as this was supposed to be the second time I tutored someone, so I found that having this observation was really useful. I sat in on another high school Maths Tutoring lesson, and they were learning financial maths.

Through watching in on this tutoring lesson, I learned that it can be important to challenge the student when they are capable of going further. For example, asking them to do it without a calculator, or to use a different method to figure out the question. Challenging the student can also come in the form of allowing them to figure out their own mistakes and questioning if they know what they did wrong. By watching the session, I learnt that allowing the student to spot and correct their own mistakes is crucial for their learning development as it means that they are starting to understand it.

Another thing I picked up during the tutoring session was that sometimes it is ok to take a small break. About halfway through the lesson, when the student started to become unfocused and restless, they took a 5 minute uno break. During the break, his concentration started to pick up again as he was engaged in a fun activity. I also noticed that after the break, when they got back to the lesson, he was more focused and ready to learn.

Altogether, through watching the lesson, I was able to learn about challenging the student and the importance of taking a break if the student needs one. This will be able to help me with tutoring in the future.

Katreen Diab

Kassandra was taking Andreas for Mathematics Year 10 and teaching Financial Maths. He is a relatively new student for Kassandra, and since this was the start of the year, this session was a revision lesson to observe how well Andreas understood the concepts of Financial Maths as a starting point to work forward for future sessions.

Kassandra spent a decent time communicating to Andreas the concepts she wanted him to understand, and then have him ample time for individual work to allow him to apply his problem solving skills to questions on his own in silence.

It is important for me to remember that students need revision sessions every now and then to make them a well rounded student. As I have tought this content for many years, I can recall it easily but a student who covered it even a few weeks ago, might have forgotten. Moving forward, I will aim to prepare some revision lessons to both boost the confidence in the students on the content they know, and ensure the concepts they learnt have stuck.

Sebastian

Staying focused while studying can be rough. One second you’re reading your notes, the next you’re deep into TikTok wondering how you got there. But with a little effort, you can actually train yourself to concentrate better and get through your work without it feeling like a total battle.

First things first, your phone is probably your biggest distraction. The best way to deal with it? Get it out of sight. Put it in another room, lock it in a drawer, or even use one of those timed lockboxes if you have zero self-control. Out of sight, out of mind. If you really need your phone for study, try an app like Forest where a little tree grows while you work. If you leave the app, your tree dies. Sounds dramatic, but it’s surprisingly effective.

Another great way to stay on track is setting up a reward system with Forest. The longer you stay focused, the more trees you grow, eventually building an entire forest. It turns studying into a challenge where you actually feel accomplished instead of just drained. Plus, the app even lets you plant real trees with the points you earn, so you’re helping the environment while smashing your study goals.

At the end of the day, it’s all about making distractions harder to access and using tools that keep you motivated. You don’t have to rely on willpower alone. Just set yourself up for success and staying focused gets way easier.

Eireyna Papinyan

Today I had the opportunity to observe Evanna’s Year 11 Advanced Maths session, with Maggie. As this was the first session back for the year, Evanna and Maggie focused on revision of domain and range, graphs and equations.

When focusing on drawing graphs, Evanna showed her student the difference between quadratic and cubic graphs. She explained slowly the key features of the graphs; stationary point, point of inflictions and turning points. She effectively used the whiteboard to demonstrate these key features, and constantly engaged her student by asking her questions to test her knowledge. When the student did not know or was not confident with her answer, Evanna gently directed her to the correct answer while providing constructive criticism. By doing this, she was able to identify learning gaps and forgotten content, which they then focused on more thoroughly during the session. This allowed her student to feel more confident in drawing graphs, which could be seen through her student becoming more confident in completing questions by herself.

Evanna also challenged her student to do enrichment questions in the textbook, which ensured the student could apply her knowledge to domain and range questions. When her student didn’t originally want to do the challenge, Evanna told her student the importance of challenging herself and testing her understanding of content as she is now in senior school.

Overall, this was a very enjoyable session to observe and was very well structured as a revision session for the student. Evanna’s attention to detail to the students work and communication techniques helped the student feel comfortable in asking questions and voicing when she had forgotten content.

Great work!!

Emma Birrell

I had the opportunity to observe Jordan’s tutoring session with his Year 12 English Advanced student today! It was great to see how comfortable the student was with asking him questions and when she didn’t understand, she would make sure there was extra clarification by asking him more questions so that she fully understood the concepts they were working through. The first thing they went through was how to find themes in texts, as the student said her teacher hadn’t really provided them with enough knowledge on how to do this. Jordan was great at properly explaining how to find themes by going through the characters and events of the texts in depth and then considering what the author’s purpose was for their text. He also explained that it’s important to understand the themes of a text as it can give greater depth to an essay, rather than just writing about surface level ideas which are more common. He then spent majority of the session discussing Module C: The Craft of Writing, as the student was quite nervous for her upcoming assessment. Particularly, they focused on how to write reflections for one’s own piece and also other prescribed texts, as the student hadn’t learnt how to do this until now. Jordan did a great job at summarising reflection structure in the most understandable way, and showed the student his own reflection as a reference so that she could see exactly how to write one, rather than just assuming she knew what he was talking about. It was great that he also explained the importance of analysing the techniques from prescribed texts, rather than simply just one’s own work, as this is a major part of reflections which I’ve found students often struggle with. Overall a great session to observe!

Daisy Brenac

I’ve recently been implementing breaks differently throughout my sessions than I’ve done so in the past.

When I first started, I thought that taking a break at the end of sessions was the best way to do them. I found, however, that especially the students who had grown quite comfortable with me would slack off in the final fifteen minutes or so and continually ask if we could “play UNO a little bit earlier today.” This style of break became counterproductive, especially considering that the first quarter of my sessions are dedicated to making sure all of my students’ homework was completed and that everything made sense to them.

As of late, I’ve still been starting my sessions going through each student’s homework with them, and then beginning to chip away at the next topic. Once they’ve had a decent crack at a couple of examples and I can see that they’re feeling relatively confident with the material, I commend them and we take a 2 game UNO break (these go by fast). On an ideal day, we win one game each and this sets up our tiebreaker at the end, depending of course on how focused they are for the remaining half hour.

In my opinion, this is highly effective for a couple of reasons.

1. It breaks the session into two halves, bringing the checkpoint until some sense of “macro-accomplishment” is felt much closer (twice in one hour instead of once at the end).

2. It allows the students’ batteries to recharge midway through, and so I’ve seen much higher spirits on their ends, especially as we get closer to the end of the sessions; instead of being flat and over it, they’re still energised, plus they’re looking forward to winning the final match of UNO.

Give it a try and see how you go!

Thomas Koutavas

Many students struggle with the overwhelming nature of studying. However with the right approach, you can study smarter and achieve better results without it consuming your life.

1. Create a Study Schedule
Organise your time by breaking study sessions into blocks (e.g., 25-30 minutes) with short breaks in between. This keeps you focused and prevents burnout.

2. Set Clear Goals
Instead of vague plans like “study math,” set specific goals, such as “complete 10 algebra problems” or “understand chapter 3.” This makes your sessions more purposeful.

3. Eliminate Distractions
Find a quiet place, put your phone on Do Not Disturb, and turn off any distractions. A focused environment improves concentration.

4. Use Active Learning
Engage with the material rather than passively reading. Summarize concepts in your own words, create flashcards, or teach the material to someone else.

5. Memory Retrieval Method
Instead of rereading notes, close your book and try to recall key points. This boosts memory and helps reinforce what you’ve learned.

6. Prioritize Health
Exercise, stay hydrated, and get enough sleep. Your physical and mental well-being must be prioritised plus if it isn’t it can affect your mental performance, so take care of your body!

With the right strategies in place, studying becomes more manageable. Stay consistent, and you’ll see improvement!

Olivia Moustakis

Studying for exams can feel overwhelming, especially when faced with a large amount of content. The Red, Green, and Orange Light Method is a simple yet highly effective strategy to help students prioritise their revision and focus on the areas that need the most attention.

How It Works

This method involves categorising topics or concepts into three colour-coded groups:

1. Red Light (Needs Urgent Attention) – These are the topics you struggle with the most. You find them confusing, often avoid them, or consistently make mistakes when answering related questions. These should be your top priority during study sessions.

2. Orange Light (Some Understanding, Needs More Work) – These are topics you have a basic grasp of but still make occasional errors or lack confidence in. These require revision and practice but aren’t as urgent as red topics.

3. Green Light (Well Understood) – These are topics you feel confident with and can explain or apply easily. While they still need review, they require less time compared to red and orange topics.

Why It Works

This method prevents students from wasting time on material they already know well while neglecting weaker areas. It also breaks down studying into manageable steps, making the process less stressful and more structured.

How to Apply It
1. Start by listing all topics or concepts that will be assessed.
2. Categorise them into red, orange, or green. Be honest with yourself—this method works best when you accurately assess your understanding.
3. Prioritise red topics first. Spend most of your study time strengthening these areas through active learning techniques like practice questions and teaching concepts to others.
4. Revise orange topics next. Use past exams, quizzes, or summarisation techniques to reinforce your knowledge.
5. Review green topics briefly. This ensures you maintain a strong understanding without overcommitting time to them.

By using the Red, Green, and Orange Light Method, you can study smarter, not harder, ensuring you’re fully prepared for your exams.

Emily Mackay