Biology tutor and cancer researcher: GCSE and A-level Biology lessons online. BSc Biomedical Science, MSc nearly finished

I have a BSc in Biomedical Sciences from the University of Southampton and am finishing an MSc in Cancer Biology and Immunology there, so genetics, cell biology and physiology are subjects I use in my own research rather than ones I've only read about. I've spent a year tutoring A-level Biology online, one-to-one and in small groups. My first session is mostly diagnostic. Rather than starting at the beginning of the syllabus, I'll ask you to talk me through a topic you find difficult and work out where the understanding actually breaks down, because it's usually one or two specific things rather than the whole subject. Once I know that, we work from there. After that, sessions follow a simple pattern: I explain the concept, then you explain it back to me, then we apply it to a past paper question. I believe that a person truly understands a concept when they can teach it to somebody else. Biology rewards this because most of the syllabus is mechanisms, and if you understand why something happens, you don't need to memorise the steps. Marks are frequently lost not through weak knowledge but through answering a slightly different question to the one asked, so we spend real time on command words, mark schemes and structuring answers to earn every available mark. I'll always tell you what to work on between sessions, and I'm happy to answer questions in between. If something isn't working, say so - I'd rather change the approach than keep repeating one that hasn't landed.