Over the last couple of years, one of our tutors, Charlie T, has devoted hundreds of hours to private tutoring. He has successfully helped students throughout the 11+ process through private home tuition, delivered weekly online tutoring to students of various ages and abilities, to name a few.
At Telios Tutors, we love to celebrate success not only with our students but also our tutors. We acknowledge hard work, consistency and the value they bring that is central to our mission – to serve as many people through private tutoring as possible.
Our clients have produced some incredible feedback for Charlie and his students have significantly improved in both confidence and competency in English and Maths as a result of his dedication to the lessons.
Telios Tutors’ vision of positively impacting young people through education would certainly not be able to be manifested without our inspiring tutors. Charlie continues to help many young people develop on an academic and personal level on a weekly basis.
We believe Charlie’s empathetic nature makes him a tutor that students warm to with ease. Today we gain a deeper insight into Charlie’s journey as we revisit some of the experiences that have been created during his time as a tutor at Telios Tutors in this Q&A:
1) How did you get started as a private tutor?
My initiation into the field of education came rather sudden. I never previously conceived the notion of teaching as a potential career path for me. That being said I have always been an academic and knowledgeable person. I found an immense interest in the idea of one on one tuition.
I am a great proponent of individualism and its importance in the development of intellect. I personally feel that teaching one student encompasses benefits unheard of in a classroom of thirty. This is what attracted me to tuition and after working with multiple agencies across London, I can honestly say that none other than Telios Tutors could have launched my career with such magnificent encouragement and support.
2) What do you love about tutoring the most?
The personal element for sure. I always figured as a child that I’d have more success academically if my teachers could find the time to provide more personal attention. Not to say that school teachers don’t care, of course, they do; however, they have to juggle twenty to thirty students at a time and within an hour.
I spend an entire hour or more focusing on one individual, crafting my lessons to their needs while providing a rare breed of support that can only be found between a teacher and student that have a personal connection. I care about my students, I want to see them succeed, and that is what I love about tutoring the most, the fact that I even have the ability to care and provide support to such a great extent.
3) Do you have any student success stories?
I have many. I have been doing this for a few years now and have worked with a diverse variety of gifted and unique individuals who have all found significant improvement throughout their tuition. I could go on and list many of the schools I have helped prepare students for City of London, St Paul’s, Highgate, Henrietta and Highgate just to name a few.
Although I am infinitely proud of all of my students who gained admission into these schools, my interpretation of ‘success stories’ relates more to the personal growth and maturity of these fascinating young scholars. From my first ever student who I taught how to tell time, all the way to a recent student who gained admission into Cambridge after completing his A-Levels.
I suppose my personal favourite success stories would be the confidence development in some of my more creative students. One, for instance, was once very apprehensive to show her writing to anyone, now she is writing a play that she plans to stage live for her community.
4) How have your students responded to online tutoring?
In the technological age, children thrive. It is completely understandable why parents would have doubts regarding the online format, however, in my experience, it has worked incredibly well and has identical benefits to face to face tutoring. I am currently working with a number of students and all have responded very well, some even enjoying the format more as they find it fun and sophisticated.
I have heard more than once that it is like I am in the room with them. The online whiteboard we use has also worked very well and file sharing has never been easier. I would say that there is an unprecedented level of organisation that comes with online tuition, as there has to be, which ultimately benefits students in the long run.
5) Tell us a bit about the novel you’re writing about and how you got into writing it?
I have always been a highly creative person, ever since I was a child. Now I do not say that lightly, many people are creative and the term gets thrown around a lot. A lot of people can be creative, but only a small fraction of people will actually spend a whole day meticulously forming and then self-critiquing a subplot narrative, character backstory, a guitar riff or pondering whether this shade of green works best to bring out the emotion in the eyes of a portrait.
I like to call myself a perfectionist creative, someone who thrives on obsession and attention to detail. I understand that the question was regarding my novel and so I’ll say this; I have been planning and writing it for the past five years. I have created a complex and colourful world with characters that I can only dream readers will connect with. But it is far from done, as I am still young and although consider myself wise for my age, I know I have much to learn and with age, I do not doubt my ideas will also mature.
This being what I hope will be my magnum opus for my novelist side, I plan on perfecting it. I am also, however, working on a number of short stories and smaller projects which I plan on publishing much sooner. Tutoring and writing go hand in hand. I spend my mornings writing and my evenings teaching. The two compensate each other both in freedom and experience.
6) Do you have any tips for parents who are going through the 11+ process for the first time?
I have worked with dozens of parents over the past few years as I have also acted as a consultant outside of tuition. By far the most crucial rule that you should adopt as a parent is to remain calm and avoid stress at all times. The 11 plus journey is no easy feat, and children need calm and steady support more than anything else. If children feel they are not under pressure, they will perform as organically as possible. Other things to note would be to research.
Too many parents go into the journey not knowing enough about the admission processes of schools and often run into nasty surprises. Thankfully, Telios Tutors have the knowledge, experience and charisma to offer the best support possible. One last thing I will mention is to give your child structure and offer them a schedule.
This will do wonders, especially when the workload increases. Remember, 11 plus preparation is not just to get them through exams, but to prepare them to maintain a consistent level of academic performance once admitted into any school.
7) What kind of feedback have parents given to you?
Parents have given me incredibly positive feedback and have been amazing to work with. Even if now and then you come across anxious mothers or concerned fathers; reassurance, as well as constant communication and support, goes a long way in improving the relationships between families and agencies.
Although I am very professional and do feel it is incredibly important to maintain healthy personal relationships with families. I can even find myself discussing a number of topics with parents outside of lessons and I am happy to do so providing I have the time of course.
8) What has been your experience working at Telios Tutors?
My experience with Telios Tutors has been nothing but positive. Lisa has been amazing in introducing me to the world of private tuition. The agency has offered me nothing but support in my endeavours, even upon realising that my methods are fairly unique and original, instead of critiquing new ideas they welcome them, as we forever learn from each other.
I definitely would not be where I am today if it were not for Telios Tutors, their personal and attentive style have permitted me to connect with students from all over the world. In short, gratitude only scratches the surface, and the word ‘impressive’ sums up a beautiful company that has excelled my expectations as a tutor, offering me a type of compassion I never thought possible from a company.
Interested in working with our inspiring English and Maths tutor, Charlie? Contact Us today to discuss how we can help.