A Student’s Perspective on Rugby School Online

In Easter 2022, a number of students from external schools joined us at Rugby School Online for our 4-day intensive revision courses. Alongside the live teaching, they were given complementary access to our self-paced revision resources.

We also offered all students the opportunity to take part in 90-minute pre-exam update sessions in May 2022.

The student below participated in all our offerings as part of her A-level Maths study. Read on for details of her experience!

How did you generally find your A-Level study?
 

I found my A-level study incredibly engaging and enjoyable, with my three A-level subjects (History, Religious Studies, and Mathematics) providing me with the opportunity to explore beyond my horizons and understand what I would like to do in the future. I found Maths A-level to be a large jump up from GCSE, however I think that the beginning of the course does mean that you have time to consolidate on the higher levels of GCSE, before embarking on new content. I found that I had to continually go over all content across Maths throughout the A-level to stay on top of it. The A-level did provide a great opportunity to be exposed to a wider scope in Maths, with greater emphasis placed on mechanics and statistics. Whilst I found the great variety interesting, it could often be difficult due to the fact that you are exposed to so many new concepts.

 
What advice can you give to others studying A-Level Maths?
 

My advice for entering Year 12’s is to, over the summer, keep the GCSE content ticking over, doing a little bit here and there, so as not to lose all of your skills and high-level ability, to lessen the jump and ensure a smoother transition.

My advice for Year 13’s is of a similar nature; and it is to ensure they have the foundation in Year 1 of A-level study consolidated, since so much of year 2 relies on a solid knowledge and ability in Year 1 content. Also, have a plan for continual revision which revisits a variety of topics, even when not preparing for a specific set of exams, as this will inevitably develop your long-term mathematical ability.

 
Why did you choose Rugby School Online? 
 

I decided to study with Rugby School Online to receive more one-on-one and small group time so that the areas that I struggled with could be tackled effectively. I wanted the opportunity to receive a fresh perspective and different way of teaching, so that I could exhaust different methodologies to find what ultimately worked for me.

I found the Easter intensive revision course incredibly useful to focus on exam-style questions and quickly yet effectively cover the entire A-level course. Any questions I had were patiently answered, with each of us being encouraged to voice our method and therefore helped without exam practice.

In a similar way, the last-minute pre-exam sessions were useful to go over key topics which had been highlighted as likely to come up and to quickly cover some of the hardest exam questions, so that they were fresh in our memory.

 
How did you find the online teaching?
 

The online approach worked well – with us being encouraged (when it was time) to step away from the learning environment for short breaks. Also, due to the online tools used by the tutor (such as an interactive whiteboard and screen sharing) the content remained engaging throughout, and the tutor was able to monitor how we were getting on, such as continual questions, us demonstrating, and submitted work. As an extra note, I think the all-girl group worked well as we all felt confident to voice any queries with our really patient and understanding tutor.

 
How did the self paced materials help?
 

The self-paced courses gave me the ability to adapt my revision around my commitments and other exams and be able to go over some major concepts as a continuation from the intense Easter revision week.

 
What would you do differently if starting your A-Levels again?
 

I would be sure to be doing continual and slow-paced revision throughout the year, making me feel more self-assured during the exam season.

 
Is there anything further Rugby School Online can do to help students?
 

In future, Rugby School Online could test people at the beginning of the intensive revision course, to gauge the correct level to start at.

 
Would you recommend Rugby School Online to others?
 

Overall, I would recommend Rugby School Online to others to seek different perspectives on teaching A-level Maths and as a source of not only an intense period of support, but also ongoing help, with the different styles of courses they have on offer.

 
Are you at your destination of choice?
 

After achieving A*A*AA in History, Religious Studies, Mathematics, and EPQ (respectively), I am at my firm choice – the University of York – studying Philosophy, Politics and Economics (PPE).

 
How are you finding university?
 

I have really enjoyed my first term, finding my degree incredibly interesting, pushing my Applied Maths skills further, and getting involved in many different sports and societies, such as university rowing, college netball, Investment and Finance society, and Griff Investment Fund (which provides me with the opportunity to gain practical and real-life experience into the world of finance through pitching and continual networking). I believe Maths A-level to be an incredibly important A-level which can take you on so many different career paths.