Rebecca O
"You are a patient and supportive teacher with excellent communication skills that made me feel comfortable engaging in lessons."
A Level Biology student
A Level
Biology
GCSE
IGCSE
Academic History
MA in Applied Professional Studies in Education: University of Sheffield
PGDE – Science with Biology: University of Sheffield
BSc with 1st Class Honours- Natural Sciences (Biology and Psychology): Durham University
International Baccalaureate: 40 Points. Higher Level: Biology (7), Chemistry (6), History (7), Standard Level: English (7), Mathematics (6), French (6)
GCSEs: Double Science (A*A*), Mathematics (A*), Geography (A*), History (A*), R.S (A*), Music (A), French (A), English Language (A), English Literature (A)
About Me
For me, the most important part of successful tutoring is understanding the individual needs of the pupil. I take time to fully grasp where they are academically, as well as their confidence levels, and use this to inform my planning. With over nine years of classroom teaching experience, combined with vast experience as a private tutor and examiner, I have a strong understanding of the curriculum, common misconceptions, and how examiners assess responses.
My lessons are interactive, engaging, and entirely bespoke. I focus on breaking down complex concepts into clear, manageable steps, building confidence through repetition and practice, and ensuring students can apply their knowledge effectively under exam conditions. As part of my MA in Education, I researched how to best develop higher-order thinking, so I regularly build in application-style questions to challenge pupils and strengthen their ability to use knowledge flexibly.
Above all, my approach is personalised, and rooted in encouragement and clarity — helping students not just to learn Biology, but to apply their knowledge, think like scientists and achieve their full potential.
Recent tuition
Having attended an independent school, and taught at two, I have a clear understanding of the private school system. I have nine years of classroom teaching experience, including four years at Haberdashers’ Boys’ School, one of the UK’s leading independent schools, where I taught Biology and prepared many high-achieving students for Medicine and other competitive university courses. I have taught the AQA , OCR and Edexcel specifications extensively and mentored students in both content mastery and academic ambition.
Below is a snapshot of my recent tuition.
IGCSE Biology (Edexcel)
I worked with this student (Malvern College) over a period of two years. Having joined the school from China in Year 10 she was significantly behind in her understanding of the course content and struggled to keep up with her class. By creating a personalised learning programme, I went through the entire specification with her, gradually building up her understanding and regularly applying it to exam questions. She finished the course with no gaps remaining and went into her exam with confidence and achieved an 8.
GCSE Biology (OCR)
This student was predicted a 6 and came to me two months before his exam struggling with most of the syllabus. Although he was very able, he had huge gaps in his knowledge and no concept of scientific methods which are critical for exam success. After a series of intensive tuition tailored to his needs, he displayed mastery over the course content and he gained a high 8 in his exam.
IGCSE Biology, Chemistry and Physics (AQA) and KS3 Science
I worked with this student (St John’s)over a period of 5 years beginning when they moved to the UK and had very limited English. Initially I used picture cards to teach key scientific terminology and the necessary language. We worked at the pace of the learner and gradually build up to more complicated scientific ideas. By frequent repetition, chunking and retrieval practice she gained confidence in her own abilities. Her lessons targeted the specific detail she would be assessed on in her exams and she was delighted with her grade 9 in all three sciences.
A Level Biology (AQA)
I supported this student (Ruthin School) who had moved to the UK without having studied GCSE Biology. We first identified and filled key GCSE knowledge gaps, including covering fundamental skills of scientific enquiry. Next we began focusing on diagnostic work at A-Level. Through regular online lessons, extensive exam practice, and precise use of terminology, the student was able to grasp the demands of the course and improved from a D to a B grade.
A Level Biology (Edexcel)
After a C prediction in his mock exam, this student (Silverdale School) came to me for tuition. We began by identifying the topics he found most challenging and thoroughly went through gaps in his subject knowledge. Next we focussed on exam technique and ensuring he could create synoptic links between topics. He achieved an A and went to his first choice university.
Hobbies
I have always had a deep love of music. I achieved Grade 8 in both Singing and Flute, and I now sing in an upper-voice chamber choir, which I find both challenging and rewarding. Keeping fit and spending time outdoors are also important to me. I enjoy running, and I regularly train for half marathons and marathons. Having grown up abroad, I have an interest in different cultures and now enjoy travelling, experiencing new places and perspectives.
Testimonials
“You are a patient and supportive teacher with excellent communication skills that made me feel comfortable engaging in lessons. Your extensive teaching experience, knowledge and effective methods such as repetition, practical exercises and useful mnemonics (short sentence and songs) helped me remember the key concepts quickly. Thanks to your guidance, I was able to improve my own knowledge and exam skills in a relatively short time and have a great jump from D to B in my end-of-year exam.”
A Level Biology tutee
