A Level
Computer Science online course

I aspire to teach Computing to children because of my passion for the subject, it’s creative nature and the potential for new developments for future generations. I am mostly guided by my own experience with over two decades of professional work history.

As the focus of British education has been shifting towards STEM-based subjects, I have been researching an aspect of Computing that is fast becoming prevalent in our everyday lives, Artificial Intelligence (AI).

Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology has uses in various industries from gaming, journalism/media to finance and state-of-the-art research fields such as robotics, medical diagnosis, and Quantum science. This research has allowed me to better understand core languages like R and Python, which are instrumental for school children to build their knowledge of basic programming, hence greatly benefitting my students.

In my penultimate position as a Computing Lead, I created a Coding Club explicitly aimed at bridging students’ skill gaps in AS/ A Levels and GCSE for their projects in Visual Basic and Python in accordance with the national curriculum. I intend to continue bridging this skill gap by drawing on my determination and experience responsibly and earnestly, making Computer Science an enjoyable and interesting subject for my students.

Computer Science is central to my work and also happens to be my hobby – I am a full member of the British Computer Society and contribute and attend the AI focus chapter in my free time. I am also a keen follower of the Quantum Computing Space and keep up with current developments, specifically IBM’s QISKIT, among other Python-based Quantum programming tools.

I am a qualified secondary teacher of Computer Science, Business Studies and Economics, with around 20 years of teaching experience. Prior to teaching, in 1998, I graduated from Oxford Brookes University and then worked in the IT industry in London for five years, initially for a fine art auction house and later in the IT European Projects team at a recruitment company.

In 2003 I progressed to teacher training and moved from London to Exeter. I graduated with a PGCE as a specialist ICT teacher and embarked on my teaching career at a comprehensive school on the South Coast of England in Dorset. More recently, I received a Secondary computer science teaching certification from the British Computing society. I taught ICT and Business studies and gained Qualified Teacher Status(QTS) in 2004. Since then, my family and I have lived in the UK, USA, Ascension Island, Sweden and Romania. I have experience of working in many school settings both in the UK and abroad; these include a high-performance comprehensive, an independent boarding school, and various international schools.

I have experience teaching Computer science from primary school to upper secondary, Economics and Business Studies in various school settings, and have promoted creative enterprise in schools through various initiatives. Along with diverse teaching and tutoring experience, I am also an assessment specialist with Cambridge international examinations.

In my spare time, I enjoy spending time with my family, playing and listening to classical and contemporary music, reading and studying, rowing and boats.

My diverse experience has helped me to become a versatile educator, aiming to bring out the best in my students. I strive to approach tutoring with patience and kindness and firmly believe in the opportunities Wolsey Hall blended learning and home-schooling offers students worldwide. Children from various backgrounds and situations can receive a high-quality education here, and I look forward to helping Wolsey Hall students to fulfil their potential.

My passion for computing began when I received my first computer (Sinclair ZX81) and was transfixed with creating coding solutions to problems. I continued my passion through my education and graduated from Kingston University with BSc (Hons) in Computer Science.

Prior to teaching, I worked in the IT industry. During this time, in addition to working in the “real” IT world, I gained significant experience in a variety of IT specialist skills, including Programming, Systems Analysis and Design and Databases. Using this experience, I have been able to make lessons more realistic by illustrating with real life examples.

I currently work as Subject Lead for Computer Science & IT for a school in the South East of England. I have shared my passion for Computer Science with my students for the past 16 years. I believe they build the future, and the skills they develop studying Computer Science & IT provide a good foundation in all occupations.

In addition to teaching in school, I contract for several exam boards as an examiner and moderator for BTEC, GCSE and A Level. These roles support my teaching as they provide me with a good insight into how to achieve higher grades in exam papers and programming projects.

In my spare time, I run the school ski club, Geek Club, and I am a verifier for the Duke of Edinburgh award scheme. I enjoy spending time with my family and our dogs.

I am very excited to be part of the Wolsey Hall Oxford Team; a positive learning experience is the foundation of a happy, successful life, and I am extremely privileged to be able to help guide their journey. I pride myself on giving my full care, attention and enthusiasm to my students.

I gained my degree with joint honours in Computer Networking and Business IT, and started my career as a Data Analyst. I then moved into an Information Technology Analyst role for a few years. In 2010 I travelled to Kenya, where I spent five years working with an entrepreneur and created a successful business. It was in Kenya, where I helped young people with computer skills that I realised my love for teaching. I returned to England, enrolled myself into a teaching programme with Warwick University and graduated with a PGCE.

As a Computer Science teacher for five years, I have trained a variety of students to achieve academic excellence and confidence in their computer and programming skills. I teach many programming languages, including Python, VB.net and Javascript. The current subject content within computing is challenging and interesting, and when taught well gives students problem solving skills that can be applied to any field of academic study.

As a part of my role as a Computer Science teacher, I also train and support other teachers in the subject. To help develop the programme, I have created and shared many resources online. I focus on the curriculum, developing ways of helping my students to flourish, and many of my lessons draw on my previous industrial experience. Having this experience allows me to relate to ‘market’ requirements and enables me to design relevant lessons. My lessons are planned to ensure that I deploy a range of teaching strategies and include a variety of activities. I provide my students with constructive feedback so they can improve and aim high.

In my spare time, I run an after-school hockey club, a cyber-discovery club (students learn cyber programming techniques), and I assist in the duke of Edinburgh award scheme. I enjoy hiking, cycling and travelling.

I look forward to sharing my knowledge and experience with my students.

Having over 15 years of experience teaching Computing/Computer Science, I have a good understanding of what makes for exam success, largely supported by my exam board role. I enjoy overcoming programming obstacles while curious about new languages (such as Swift), which complements my teaching of Python, VB.NET and C# (while not forgetting scripting languages HTML/CSS/JS).

Since qualifying as a teacher, I have acquired further teaching-related certifications, such as the Google IT Support Specialisation qualifications and NCCE specialisms. This has also led to an interest in localising how networking and IoT can be used in the household. I also value my continuing academic journey. My latest MBA certification is my proudest achievement, with a thoughtful research project assessing how SME capacity challenges can overcome digital marketing strategic shortfalls.

As much as I love teaching and learning, I value a good work-life balance. Family is my biggest gift, and we always welcome any opportunity to go skiing or snowboarding. We love viewing the countryside’s surroundings from the top of hills or mountains while giving our four-legged friends. Fitness is important to me, and I enjoy the odd spin class or forestry pursuit!

I look forward to supporting Wolsey Hall Oxford students and helping them to fulfil their potential.

I am a qualified and experienced Computer Science teacher, having taught in South London and Oxfordshire as Head of a Successful Computer Science department. I have also led Computer Science for a trust of 50 schools at Key Stage 3, 4 and 5 (Secondary Level) as well as leading outreach work with Primary students.

Outside of teaching, I have collaborated on some of the most popular GCSE and A level computing textbooks. I have also consulted and delivered training for AQA, Hodder, Dubai College, the British Computer Society, Philip Allan, ZigZag, to name but a few.

I am also conducting research into the use of Virtual Reality with the Open University. Amongst other projects, I have presented at several conferences and was recently contracted to write a book on VR in Education for Routledge.

I am passionate about Computer Science, and I love sharing that passion with learners. I believe the skills we develop studying Computer Science, problem solving and decomposition, can help us in all subjects and all walks of life. I have supported students to progress to some of the top universities and computing related courses, and on to computing related careers. Their success has been a fantastic reward.

Outside of education, I still enjoy problem solving and programming for enjoyment. I cycle regularly and hike in the Lake District. I enjoy reading, with a particular penchant for Terry Pratchett and Tom Sharpe. I enjoy the occasional play on Elite Dangerous (in VR, obviously) and spending time with my young family.

I have over ten years of experience teaching Computing, Computer Science and Information Technology in high schools in my native South Africa. I was also the foundation teacher at two different schools, meaning that I started the department in those schools. I have also been a driver of digital transformation in schools, being the first to be a Google Certified Educator and assisting the staff in gaining their certifications.

As well as teaching in schools, I have consulted for Pearson Education, creating a training manual for them and running a course as a Master Trainer in a Train-The-Trainer workshop. I have also worked in industry as a Systems Engineer.

The most exciting thing about computers is the way they allow you to combine logical thinking with creativity to solve problems. This is particularly true when creating computer games, which I enjoy as a hobby.

These days coding is the new literacy, and everyone deserves to be fluent. Not everyone understands everything quickly or even on the first try but I have helped many students to understand, practise and improve their results, and I will help you too.

My wife and I recently came to live in the UK where she has a position with the NHS. When I am not helping students or creating computer games, I enjoy cycling and spending time with the family.