Hugo

 
 
 

School:

The King’s School Canterbury

A-Levels: French (A*), Spanish (A), English (A)

AS-Level: Maths (A)

University:

University of Cambridge

BA (Hons) Modern and Medieval Languages, 2:i 

PGCE, Pass

Master’s in Education, Pass

Teaching and tutoring experience:

Teacher and Second-in-Charge of MFL at The Kingston Academy

  1. I am completing my fifth year teaching French and Spanish at KS3, KS4, and Spanish to KS5. In that time I have prepared students for public exams every year with regular success. 

  2. In my first year as Second in Charge, we were inspected by OFSTED (April 2024) and graded outstanding. I count this especially as a success since they conducted a curriculum deep dive in MFL. 

  3. I led on Departmental change, introducing the EPI pedagogical framework across all classrooms. This is a modern approach to language teaching which privileges listening and chunking of grammar in line with cutting edge research on the role of memory and cognitive load in teaching. This was reflected in the OFSTED report where they noted students “articulate and grasp complex concepts fluently”.

  4. I have run numerous trips both in Britain and abroad. Two particular highlights have been an exchange programme to Barcelona and a theatre trip in London. The latter was an especially proud moment as I took a group of Y10 non-native speaker Spanish students to see La Casa de Bernarda Alba in Spanish. This after having guided them through reading the text in the original after only 3.5 years of learning. I have since read texts in French with subsequent groups.

  5. I count my understanding of high-level pedagogy as an especial strength and have successfully mentored multiple PGCE students through their placements to flourish as Early Career Teachers. I also manage other MFL teachers and provide CPD training at the whole-school level in the form of formal sessions and 1:1 coaching.

Tutoring 

  1. Over the past 10 years I have tutored students in French, Spanish, and Religious Studies at KS2-KS5 level. This has been a mix of private clients and agency work.

Teaching style and philosophy:

Teaching Philosophy 

I teach because I believe that, through learning a broad, balanced curriculum students can learn to better understand themselves, building in self-confidence and rounding out their unique identities. I am especially passionate about school education where I believe you can earn freedom of choice for whatever you wish to do in later life.

Teaching Style

I am well versed in a wide range of pedagogical approaches within the language teaching profession. All my lessons are built on a foundation of phonics training, often through a mixture of games and explicit teaching.

With younger students and those aiming for success at foundation level in GCSE I believe in the use of primarily oral/aural instruction and gamification to reduce friction for those students who struggle with speaking. 

For those aiming at the top grades at GCSE I believe in more traditional communicative methods aiming to make automatic the features examiners most want to see. We will build these into speaking and writing, focusing first on correct syntax, then automaticity with said key features.

Additional information:

As well as working full-time in school, I am a member of the Great Britain Fencing Team. I compete internationally between four and seven times per year. This journey has taught me the value of intense, focused work. It has also given me the opportunity to see countries and meet people from all over the world, reaffirming my love of languages as a means of communication.

Due to timetabling constraints I am primarily only-able to tutor online and outside of school hours. However, I have more availability to travel in West London during the school holidays.

Alex Sever