F A Q

What ForMath is all about?

"Format your mind from all mathematical misconceptions, beat the Maths-Phobia." Most students are terrified from the maths exam because they've been repeatedly getting disappointing results. Why is this so? Maths is like a tall skyscraper. If you keep building upon wobbly or damaged foundation, your skyscraper will collapse and you’ll end up with believing that you have only rubble. Many private lessons emphasize past papers, they give notes in class, more homework, and repeat over and over again the same points. Of course Formath will do all of this, however I intend to give something extra. I want to create anti math-phobia techniques which help identify the deeper problems, like fractions fear, geometrical misconceptions, algebra misunderstandings etc which enfeeble the mathematical foundations of the students.

How do you intend to live up to your ethos?

We at Formath have developed a system known as Basics1st which makes use of the following techniques:

·         Diagnostics quizzes which are designed to identify gaps in knowledge.

·         Old style drill exercises which unfortunately have been removed from new textbooks and are leaving whole generations of students lacking the basics.

•        Weekly Videos in which the tutor re-explains the fine points of the lesson
•        Multidimensional learning including visual aids, videos, practical experiments in class and discussions.
•       Quarterly report outlining student’s progress with breakdown of marks according to topic
•         Regular Newsletters with tips and short videos highlighting key concepts.
•     Regular blogs reinforcing material learnt in class.
•        Detailed notes including basic arithmetic and algebra

Apart from all of this, Formath recognizes the fact that students also have a phobia for the exam itself. Some students do very well throughout the year but then are disappointed when they receive the exam scores. Most maths teachers recognize this problems but few understand the real reason behind it. We at Formath realize that  understanding the subject and tackling the exam are two separate skills. That is why we have developed a system which is designed to build upon Basics1sts but focuses more on Exam techniques rather than the subject fundamentals. This is how we plan to achieve this:

·         Speed tests that help students handle quick but accurate calculations

·         Time management skills that are useful for any examination of any subject.

·         “Time-attack” exercises that convert each homework into a mini test

·         Question association and selection techniques for Alevel

·         Mental test exercises for Olevel, designed to Ace the mental section of paper 1

·         Regular testing and full feedback report for each student.

How will you make sure that your system is being executed well?

Quarterly questionnaires will be sent to parents and students. Upon reviewing these questionnaires, the necessary steps for improvement will be taken with immediate effect. Also constant research on other teaching philosophies and methods will be carried out by the tutor in order to ensure the most adequate service possible. Parents meetings will be held regularly on request and students’s feedback will be requested on a lesson to lesson basis.

 So what are you offering more that other tutors?

What ForMath offers is a more direct approach at tackling the Mathematics examination, be it Olevel,  Alevel, Intermediate or even school exams etc. Exam skills are treated separately from subject skills and are monitored regularly. Just remember that getting all your homework correct doesn’t mean you are going to do well in the exam. Exam stress is something that is taken very seriously by ForMath and we endeavour to help students fight it using the methods outlined above. Moreover ForMath strives to tackle each students’s needs individually by providing constant online support and quarterly detailed individual reports. Parents are also encouraged to make regular contact with the tutor and discuss any concerns that arise from time to time. The most important thing is that ForMath provides the ideal framework for a student to improve and, subject to the student’s commitment, improvement will be tangible, month after month.