Benjamin

After graduating from Southampton University in 2002 with a 2:1 in Geography (BSc) I spent one year working as a Learning Support Assistant in a secondary school in north London. It was during this period that I realised I had a passion for education and I applied for a PGCE in 2003 and started the course at the Institute of Education in London in September of that year. Following successful completion of the PGCE I started a full time job in London teaching Geography. After two years in the job I was promoted to the Subject Leader (also known as Head of Department). I successfully led the department for three years. In my final year at the school I took over the role of Head of Humanities (covering History, Geography and R.E.) on a temporary basis during a transitional phase in the school's development.

In 2009 I applied for and successfully got a job to teach at in international school in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. This was an amazing opportunity and one I thoroughly enjoyed. Again, after one year as a classroom teacher I was promoted to the head of department role where I stayed until July 2013.

I then decided to move back to the UK to study for an MA in Globalisation and Environmental Politics at King's College London and was pleased that the hard work I put into this was rewarded with a distinction grade. Following that I worked in international schools in Slovakia (as a classroom teacher), then in Togo and Myanmar where I was head of the Humanities faculties. In August 2021 I moved to Bangkok and started work at an international school in the city where I am currently the head of the Geography and Global Politics department.

As a tutor I believe it is very important to understand the particular needs of the student, and to develop an understanding of how they learn best. A tutor-student relationship should be completely honest so that both tutor and student feel comfortable during sessions and students are confident in asking for help when needed. Crucially, a tutor is not there to provide the right answers, but rather to guide students towards finding the right answers themselves - this principle should be established at the start of the tutoring programme.

As mentioned in my personal biography, I am a full time teacher and head of department at an international school in Thailand. When I am not tutoring or teaching I enjoy snowboarding, scuba diving, running, watching live music and I have recently taken up kitesurfing.