Blaine
Oxford University mathematics graduate (First Class, prize‑winner)| 17,000+ hours|GCSE, A‑level specialist|in-person and online|bespoke
About
I am a 40 year-old prize-winning Masters graduate in Mathematics from Oxford University, with a First Class MMath, in my seventeenth year as a full-time subject specialist tutor of mathematics, with over 17000 hours one-to-one, face-to-face and online experience. In earlier years, I was awarded Top Candidate Notifications in A-level Maths, A-level Further Maths, and GCSE Statistics.
I am registering interest for the new academic year ahead.
I offer both face-to-face sessions, travelling to my local clients, and online sessions worldwide, delivered using a top-of-the-range hardware suite.
I offer support in mathematics at secondary levels, from Key Stage 3 including for Common Entrance and preparation for papers for entry to individual schools, through domestic and international GCSEs for all major boards, and A-level Maths and Further Maths, including International A-levels, and the Pre-U.
I am happy to provide my services in-person to students up to 15 miles from Wilmslow, dependent on practicalities, primarily to the semi-rural areas of Cheshire East.
I have sixteen full academic years' experience as a full-time private tutor. My role addresses the pitfalls of a mainstream education by truly individualising it, and is perfected through thousands of hours of experience of striving to achieve precisely that with a vast array of students of differing abilities and needs.
I manage a large client book of up to eighty students at any one time and have a high volume of returning customers, attracting many personal recommendations. As one-to-one provision in a single subject is my sole business interest, the experience I have in delivering effective tutorials in mathematics is vast, for over twenty-five different qualifications and examinations. Seeing my students' capabilities and confidences flourish has defined my purpose for many years… and I hope, for many more yet to come!
One of the most important things for me has been to create a healthy engagement between my students and the subject. Traversing the mathematical landscape is an art and it can be a very uncomfortable environment for some. The subject is emotive because society makes mathematical capability a judgement over the self, and this forms several issues. Children can become dismissive of their potential and lack confidence at one end of the scale, or at the other have a relationship with the subject that is not their own and will not sustain itself. My primary business interest is in empowering students with genuine difficulties to master the subject to the point that it helps them realise life ambitions, and if I can inspire them on the way, all the better. The environment I foster is one of free exploration of idea, much like a child in a sandpit at play, without artificial bounds on discussion. A friendship group of top-set year 11 students once confided in me they collectively never understood division at primary school, and that is exactly the kind of openness I want to foster, because I am simply there to help- whether with the support of remedial arithmetic one moment or the stretch of advanced abstract algebra the next- and as such the pace and the level is entirely dictated by the knowledge base my student presents.
I am not a suited, booted assessor- nor old-school, to be frank! The feedback I've received indicates that I am very successful in creating a friendly and supportive atmosphere that encourages discussion, openness, and good efforts. My aim as a maths tutor is to help my students to 'think mathematically'; to uncover the inherent simplicity in methods and concepts and to facilitate this by offering illuminating explanations.
I am here to provide a complete teaching experience that in addition to ironing out difficulties and providing excellent exam preparation as matter of course, at no extra effort on the part of the student introduces them to the thought processes and insights of the professional mathematician. I have the STRONGEST sense of duty of care to my students and want every individual I have the privilege to work with to exceed their own expectations and the expectations of others and to walk away feeling truly proud of their achievements.
Subjects & pricing
Languages
- English Native
Qualifications
Higher education
- MMath Mathematics · University of Oxford · First-class (1st) · 2008 University of Oxford · First-class (1st) · 2008
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Adrian
Thanks for the help, Ellie enjoyed the lessons and found them very useful.
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Paula
Blaine is an excellent tutor, my son found his tutorials enormously helpful.
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Sarah
Blaine has tutored our son for over 2 years and has provided him with the highest level Maths tutoring adapting each session to ensure maximum progress. Our son is very much aiming for a grade 9 and wanted to be sure that he had a complete toolkit to achieve his ambition. Blaine has always been very flexible and understanding and although my input into the sessions is non existent I hear the way that my son and Blaine converse and I don't believe he could have had a better relationship or standard of tutoring from anyone else. Blaine has given confidence, calm and support to our son and we hope that will continue into his A level Maths journey. Thank you so much :-)
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Rachel
Blaine is an excellent tutor. He has approached our 12 year old son with respect and kindness, whilst making his sessions relevant and fun. He is very responsive to any parent query and adapted sessions to accommodate an entrance exam to a top North West school. Our son passed the exams, in no small part thanks to Blaine’s tutorage. Thank you Blaine, for reigniting our son’s confidence in maths!
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Pearl
Blaine is worth his weight in gold. He teaches the most efficient methodology in solving questions. He is also keen to understand mistakes, so that he is able to correct any misconceptions held. His approach helps build a solid foundation in Maths. He inspires a love of Maths, and nurtures this passion. Blaine is truly what is said in his profile, and in our experience, much more.
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Fran
Blaine is an excellent teacher. My son, 14, has had weekly lessons with Blaine for two months and is very impressed with his teaching methods. As parents, we are very pleased to see his school results already improved visibly. Thank you, Blaine!
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Debarati
Excellent tutor who understands the capability and potential of the student. He recognises the knowledge gaps and works towards not only filling those but ensuring a strong foundation.
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Inger
Blaine has been the perfect tutor for my 13 year old son, who needed support to cover the common entrance syllabus. He has provided an exceptionally high standard of teaching and my son will certainly miss his tuition sessions with Blaine. I can not recommend Blaine highly enough and we will certainly use him for support during exam periods and GCSE.
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Claire
My son found Blaine to be an excellent Maths Tutor and felt very positive about the progress he would make with Blaine's help. Unfortunately, they only had a few sessions before the lockdown began so things are currently on hold.
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Peter
Blaine has done an Excellent job of tutoring our son for A level mathematics In less than 6 months he has improved his projected grades by 3 levels He is always well prepared and on time for tutorials. Plus our son has been extremely happy with his teaching methods and guidance Wholeheartedly recommend him
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Jo
Johnny had been moved down from set 1 to 2 at the end of year 9 at his private school. We had already realised there may be some issues (class tests were around grade 5) and had arranged for Blaine to be in place as his tutor for the start of year 10. Today, results day, sees Johnny with a grade 9 in Maths and a sixth form place at a prestigious local grammar school. To say that Blaine’s tutoring has been money well spent is an understatement. Not only has he enabled Johnny to get to grips with the material, he has also developed in Johnny a love for the subject, so much so that his A levels will include both Maths and Further Maths. Blaine is an extremely capable tutor - kind, funny, with high expectations for his students. It’s Blaine who has been able to draw Johnny’s ability out to lead directly to today’s outcome. Needless to say we are delighted with the result and to be continuing with him for the next 2 years. Thank you Blaine!
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Henry
Blaine was an excellent tutor, in 20 lessons he improved my Alevels maths grade from a C to an A. He is very thorough in his teaching and explains everything very clearly, in a way which makes it easy for you to understand. I would highly recommend him to anybody looking for a maths tutor.
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Jo
Blaine is an excellent tutor - and gave our son great support and confidence at a time when he was finding his Pre-U course challenging. I would highly recommend Blaine for maths tutoring at this senior level.
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Zoe
Blaine is an outstanding tutor. Through receiving Blaine's tuition, our son (who is in Year 11) has gained hugely in confidence in his maths and has increased his expectations, now aiming for a Grade 9 (previously predicted a Grade 7) when he takes his GCSEs in a few months' time. Blaine is a highly likeable and personable individual who makes maths lessons fun. Our son looks forward to Blaine's lessons and there is always plenty of laughter and enjoyment to be heard during the lessons! We are keen to employ Blaine again next year for our younger son.
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Sarah
Blaine and my daughter get along very well. This is a big achievement when trying to teach her maths! He is calm and patent. He really knows his stuff but he can also understand why someone else wouldn't understand it and bring it down to their level. He also has great knowledge of the GCSE syllabus and can create GCSE example questions out of thin air. This is so important as they need so much practise at interpreting the longer, more complex questions and breaking them down into the actual maths that they need to solve. In Rosie's last school test she had attempted and worked though most questions whereas previously there have always been big blank spaces. Very pleased, that is progress. A hard job, done well. Thanks.
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Mariaclara
Blaine truly helped my teenage sister with her GCSEs, she could not have succeeded without his support. We, as a family, are extremely grateful. My sister found his teaching very clear and reassuring. Blaine never hesitated in explaining things several times if she did not understand. We strongly recommend Blaine and thank him for his invaluable support!
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Ruth
Blaine is an excellent tutor, just who my son needed to help give him confidence to obtain a great maths GCSE result. Blaine is always punctual and reliable, has a great warmth and sense of humour as well as being extremely knowledgeable. I would highly recommend him to anyone needing maths tuition.
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Patricia
Thank you Blaine. You are a gentleman and a scholar! You have an exceptional ability to engage with young people and I can sincerely say it was a real delight to see how much Edward loved your sessions. You inspired him with confidence in his ability and assured his success. You are without a doubt an exceptional tutor.
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Liza
Blaine is great. We are half way through 12 months to GCSE's but we have already seen a marked improvement in confidence, attitude and test results. Blaine is also extremely reliable, punctual and likable.
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Alison
What a great tutor! Blaine has the ability to make Zak's maths sessions full of fun, and has really helped Zak to grasp more difficult concepts.