As you know, we’re all about finding great role models in STEM careers to inspire our students. Elan is no exception to that!
Another fantastic member of the tutor team, chemical engineering student Elan is tutoring maths, chemistry, and physics for GCSE and A level. He’s fully booked for 2022 exams but you can get on the waitlist for a September 2022 start.
I went through a series of different career choice options, but ultimately chose chemistry because of trying to understand more of the world around us on the atomic scale and using that knowledge to inspire a greener future.
Elan Mistry
Having already gained a BSc & ARCS in Chemistry, and MRes in Nanomaterials (achieving a Distinction), from Imperial College London, Elan is now a PhD Candidate in Chemical Engineering at UCL. He is researching the synthesis of ammonia through photo-electrochemistry. (Incidentally, socially conscious Imperial launched a free online course on Coronavirus that you can access here.) He was also awarded First Prize in a writing competition hosted by the IChemE London & South East Young Members’ Forum answering, ‘How is Chemical Engineering Addressing a Global Issue?’.
Elan is excited to help, inspire and reassure students to do well in their studies. He enjoys playing Squash and Badminton. He also enjoys baking. I’m excited to help him gain experience through tutoring to help students in their understanding and passion for STEM subjects.
Based in Finsbury Park, Elan will be primarily tutoring students online, through Zoom and/or Google Meet. Our students and tutors are all now very familiar with using these platforms for lessons, and it actually has provided several opportunities that don’t exist in face to face lessons. An article from the World Economic Forum shared data that “on average, students retain 25-60% more material when learning online compared to only 8-10% in a classroom”. We can be more ‘ad hoc’ with scheduling lessons, and the content covered. Having to work through online platforms may have initially seemed like a barrier, but it has now opened up additional opportunities for students to engage in their lessons, and create learning material ‘as they go’.
I asked Elan a few questions about his academic and career experience so far.
What did you study to get here?
A level Chemistry (Edexcel) A*
A level Further Mathematics (Edexcel) · A*
A level Mathematics (Edexcel) · A
A level Physics (OCR) · C (A at AS)
I received the Doug Peacock Memorial Award 2015 Certificate of Distinction for achieving the highest grade in Chemistry A Level out of 80 students at Kingsbury High School Sixth Form.
Is this what you always wanted to do?
I went through a series of different career choice options, but ultimately chose chemistry because of trying to understand more of the world around us on the atomic scale and using that knowledge to inspire a greener future.
What kind of student were you at school?
Focused, determined and well mannered
Did you have a tutor?
Yes I did! I found it extremely helpful to have a tutor to support my studies. I had a tutor during my GCSEs and A Levels and found that the 1-to-1 sessions were essential in enabling me to reach where I am today. The individual lesson provided me with the confidence to ask questions that I wasn’t comfortable with asking in school. The sessions also helped me pick out my weaknesses and overall strengthen my skills.
How did you decide what to study?
I wanted to study something in which I could make a difference. With chemistry, we can make materials to combat climate change and hopefully build a better future.
Have you made any mistakes along the way to your current career?
Too many to count! But it’s important to make mistakes! Mistakes are important tools to ensure you eventually arrive at the right answer or the right path. Learning from your mistakes let’s you grow and develop your skills.
I had some setbacks during my university studies which meant that I could not do an integrated masters degree. I finished with a BSc. In spite of this, I decided to take some time to study to improve my confidence in the topics and come back to complete an MRes in Nanomaterials with a Distinction.
What are your top three tips for GCSE students?
Don’t panic
Read the specification for your course
Start revising early
Great advice for our students in 2021! It’s never too early to build good study habits. You can read more revision tips in our ‘Study Tips’ blog series.
Elan is available weekday evenings and weekends for online lessons in maths, physics, and chemistry. Get in touch here to find out more and book a lesson.
Do you struggle to recall things you know you’ve learned, and wish you knew how to improve your memory for exams?
Effective revision requires a lot of self-motivation, organisation, and good old-fashioned hard work. It means making a long-term commitment to study and putting the work in even when you don’t feel like it. Unfortunately, there are no shortcuts.
But sometimes it feels like it really isn’t worth it when you keep covering the same topics time and time again and none of it is sinking into your memory for exams.
In this article I’m sharing my top 10 tips to improve memory retention and recall, so that time spent on revision is as effective and rewarding as possible.
Don’t just read it
When we’re reading, the words pass through our head for long enough to string sentences together, and then pass straight back out again. What we retain might be a general picture in order to keep a story together, but not much more. It is very rare to read a text once and be able to quote it back afterwards, unless it was really meaningful to you.
What helps to move that information from short-term to long-term memory for exams is doing something more with it, which can be as simple as writing it down.
But that doesn’t mean copying it word for word – that takes very little brain work and so doesn’t retain the information. Turn it into bullet points, a table, a mind map, a list, etc that will stick in your memory for exams.
Make it meaningful in your memory for exams
While we don’t fully understand the way the mind works yet, we know it is capable of some astonishing things.
While studying isn’t about memorising facts without understanding, it does help to make the most of your memory and recall.
And we can recall much better facts and events that meant something to us.
Can you think back to an event from your childhood that had an impact on you? Can you recall specific details about sights, smells, sounds?
Having a feeling associated with something helps to keep it in our long term memory. We spend more time processing it.
So when Derren Brown connects standard playing cards to people in his life, he’s giving them personal meaning, and they stay in his memory.
You don’t need to go to these lengths to improve your memory for exams, but spend some time thinking about the content your learning, and what it means to you, how it relates to other things you’ve learned, and if it can be connected with something you enjoy to make it more memorable. Like a mnemonic.
Be the teacher
Take it from me – nothing helps you understand something like trying to explain it to someone else. Be the teacher for a moment and try teaching a friend or family member. Even the dog! They don’t have to take an exam.
To do this, you’ll need to think about the key points to cover in your lesson, the way the topic builds from the basic principles to apply the content, and how to explain it to someone with no prior knowledge. It’s a great way to cement your understanding into your memory for exams.
Put it into practice
When you’ve processed some new information, it is important to then put that learning into practice with worksheets or practice exam questions. Not only does this help you to see how much you have remembered, but it is also a great way to further knit the knowledge into your brain so it sticks in your memory for exams.
You can find lots of example questions with a quick Google search, but it is good to ask your tutor to double-check they are relevant to your course. You don’t want to be battling more complicated questions than you need to!
How does this fit into your existing knowledge?
Your school curriculum, believe it or not, has a story to it. There’s a method to the madness! It is designed to provide a series of interlinked topics building an understanding of the subject as a whole, with some tier systems to build in the foundations of the next level of learning for those wishing to take it further.
The idea is that the topics will be taught in an order to build that story in your mind, and ultimately you will be able to piece them together.
So when you’re revising a topic, can you see how it relates to other things you have learned?
They don’t have to be in the same subject – many subjects have crossover or connections between them.
Or does it relate to something you’ve learned outside of school?
It is a sign of a developed learner that they can develop their understanding of learned content beyond the curriculum. And it also makes it more interesting if you can see how it relates to your world.
Paint a picture in your memory for exams
Memories aren’t all about words. Do you ever see images and faces when you’re thinking about something? These are part of your memories too.
We can create visual memories to help us recall things, and it is a lovely way to get creative with our notes. You might already have pictures and graphics in your textbook to help create these memories for exams.
When you’re re-processing your learned content, can you make it into some sort of graphic, picture, table, graph, etc? Bonus points if you can stick it up on your wall!
This provides extra opportunities for learning – when we read the information, when we process it to create the poster, and every time we see it after that.
I used to have a drawing of the photosynthesis equation stuck on the back of my toilet door. When I’d be sat there I’d have nothing better to do than look at it! (I didn’t have a mobile phone then…). I have never forgotten it.
If something’s really catching you out, give this trick a go!
Set up a dedicated study area
It is important to be able to focus the mind when studying. The brain can’t multitask so if you keep getting distracted, you aren’t revising effectively.
You will need a quiet place to work, or some noise cancelling headphones. If you have to, ask your household to give you space during your study time, and agree it with them ahead of time. Perhaps you’ll need to revise at school or in a library to be free from distractions.
Set up a comfortable work space. Balancing your books on your knee while sitting on the floor might be alright for 10 minutes, but not for prolonged study periods each day. You’ll end up with sore joints and study doesn’t need to be any more painful. Set up a comfortable chair at a desk or table, with everything you need around you and plenty of light.
Listening to music can be helpful, as long as that isn’t stealing your attention. I can’t listen to my favourite music when I’m really trying to focus on my work. It has to be something bland with no words to sing along to. There’s lots of options for study or concentration music online. Classical music is often recommended, but see what works for you.
If your physical space isn’t distracting you, is your mental space any better?
Are you thinking too much or worrying about something that you just can’t get your mind off of? It’ll be difficult to focus on your studies if that’s the case.
It can help to talk to someone who understands what you’re going through. If you don’t feel like you do have anyone to talk to, why not visit Young Minds. They’re dedicated to supporting teens with their mental health struggles.
We all have periods where we struggle with our thoughts and feelings. It doesn’t make us broken. It’s just another part of our health that we need to take care of.
Preparing for exams can be a trigger for these sorts of feelings. If you’re finding stress and worry stops you from focusing on your work, make sure you talk to someone who can help you to work through your worries and support you. There’s no overestimating the value of a supportive ear when you need one.
But even smaller burdens on the mind can build up and become distracting, which is why it is good not to make a habit of commiting things to memory that you don’t need to.
Why try to remember your schedule for the day when you can keep a diary?
Don’t bother memorising a shopping list when you can write it down.
If you have regular things to remember weekly/monthly put them on a recurring calendar entry.
Lots of things to do? Write them all down and schedule them for later, and then put them out of your mind for now.
Clear your mental desk so that you have the space you need to work.
Sleepy?
Sleep is one of the most important elements of a great study schedule and seems to be the first thing to go out the window when stress kicks in. And do you know what happens then? Stress levels go up, focus goes down, and its a vicious cycle.
Make sure you keep as close as possible to a regular sleep schedule, and get 8-9 hours a night. Teenagers need more sleep than their parents, especially if they’re studying or exercising lots. And it is a lot easier to get those hours of sleep in if you go to bed at the same time each night, Your body likes routine, and you’ll find it easier to go to sleep.
If a busy mind stops you from drifting off, try listening to some soothing sounds, or a bedtime story. They aren’t just for babies – I listen to these on Calm when my mind won’t shut off. It helps to drown out the noise and quieten the mind into sleep.
Alternatively, when there’s just too much going on in there, keep a notebook by your bedside and write down everything that’s going through your mind when you can’t sleep. Letting it all out can help you to leave it on the paper and go to sleep.
Change things up
Variety is the spice of life, a change is as good as a holiday, all work and no play, etc. Basically, don’t make it boring.
If you’re really finding revision isn’t working, mix things up a bit.
Work somewhere different.
Use someone else’s notes.
Try a different technique.
Change your schedule.
Trying something different makes things more interesting, and it also means you’re thinking more about what you’re doing, which is always a bonus when studying.
I’d love to be able to help build your confidence for your exams, which is why I’m sharing revision resources in my free Facebook group. Come and join us to help reduce your stress and build your confidence for exams.
Does it feel like you’re processing a constant to-do list in your mind, from the minute you wake up, until the last minutes (or hours) of the day you spend trying to turn it off and go to sleep.
Walking from one room to another involves picking things up on the way, calling out to your child to find their PE kit, phone in hand scheduling appointments for the weekend, mentally processing a shopping list, noting the handle needs tightening, and the bin needs emptying. Does this sound familiar?
There’s always ONE person in the house whose brain is on that permanent cycle. And that person keeps everyone else going on the right path while they are mentally burdened.
My experience visiting different families each week tells me that 99% of the time this person is the mother.
And that mother will be the one who sought me out, asked me all the questions to make sure I could help her kids, scheduled the appointment with the family’s entire weekly schedule committed to memory, put the appointment on the calendar to make sure everyone knew I was coming, made sure the bill was paid, made me a cup of tea when I arrived, and was there at the end of the lesson to ask how it went.
While my time management tips are generally shared with overwhelmed GCSE students, lets face it – Mum is the one who needs to make time for a gin on the sofa today.
So what can you do about it?
1. Prioritise
Yes, I know. That got your back up. You wouldn’t be doing things if you didn’t really have to.
But most of the time when we absolutely have to make time, like when there’s an emergency, or we break a leg, things don’t get done and it’s OK. So make sure you’re very aware of what your priorities are.
Ultimately, you could drop absolutely everything if you were comfortable with the consequences. But presumably you want a roof over your head and food in your stomach. And you might want the same for your dependents.
Basically, decide what is really important to you. Perhaps you can drop some of the stuff that isn’t.
Take some time now to write out literally everything you have on your mental to-do list. Or maybe you already keep a list somewhere, in which case make sure you’ve done a complete brain dump into it. Get if all out of your head, and all in the same place so you can see it. Marvel at its epic glory. That is not even all that lives in your head at any one moment. It’s now easier to see why we forget where we left the car keys, and put the hairbrush in the freezer!
Pick out from that list the things that are really important to you. Can you put them into some sort of order? Or perhaps highlight them in different colours – top, middle, and bottom priority.
2. Focus
These two are often confused, but they’re not the same. You can put your tasks in order but if you still try to do them all you haven’t saved yourself any effort. Focusing is about letting go of the things that don’t serve you right now.
If something has been on the list forever and doesn’t ever get done, maybe it can just be taken off and forgotten about. If you’ve lived this long without it, do you really need it?
Have you made something really important in your mind when really it isn’t, and it’s just causing you stress? Let it go.
If you struggle to let them go, try writing them down and literally binning the list. Burn it, shred it, whatever you like. But show your mind it’s gone, and it can be forgotten.
3. Deal, delegate, dump
Work through your list now deciding what you can just do in 5 minutes to tick off, what you need to delegate to someone else, and what’s getting added to the burn list to forget about.
I like to schedule a power hour every so often to blast through those 5 minute jobs and shrink the list a bit. It’s very satisfying when you feel overwhelmed and need a boost.
4. Morning and evening routines
I keep seeing these on Instagram, where some health guru has their vitamin rich smoothie at 4am, meditates, reads their motivational book, runs 5 miles, hugs their kids, and then goes off to earn their 7 figure salary.
That’s not what I mean. Those guys did that once, put it on Instagram, and are now trying to live up to it like the rest of us.
But you can build handy habits into your day by ‘linking’ them to something. And the beginning and end of your day are a great place to start.
What are the things you’d like to do each day?
Get enough sleep
Brush your teeth
Floss
Eat breakfast
Take any medication / vitamins
Check your email
Review your schedule
Stretches / physio?
Exercise
Shower
Empty the bins
Wash up
Clean surfaces
Read
Cook
Meal plan / food tracking
Sort the mail
They quickly stack up, right? When are you going to do all of this? It already seems like a full day.
You can do this in the first hour of the day and the final hour of the day by linking them into routines and building good habits.
I would recommend the Fabulous App for this, but you can do it on your own. Decide what you want your routines to look like, and tweak them over time. Go from one thing to the other in the simplest order each day. It becomes habit, and you don’t even think about it.
5. Limit your time cleaning
There are some tasks that will never be finished, and housework is one of them. The phrase ‘A woman’s work is never done’ was coined by some non-feminist who otherwise knew what they were talking about. You could clean for as long as you can clean and you’ll still find something that needs a Hinch. Forget it. Unless you’re Mrs Hinch and you get paid to obsess, don’t! No one cares as much as you do. And actually I bet guests would LOVE that you aren’t perfect so they can relax and be imperfect too.
It’s great to take pride in your home, but preserve your energy for where it better serves you.
My trick is to pick a room a day, set a 20 minute timer, and clean like mad for that 20 minutes. As soon as the timer ends, I’m done. I do that every day and my house stays clean. Now I don’t have a big household so you might set a longer timer, or you might get more people involved in it. Just don’t give it too much of your time.
If you can afford it, get a cleaner. It isn’t extravagant if you have the money. It doesn’t make you a diva and it provides income to someone, and time to you. Why not?
6. Schedule
I could not live without my calendar now. Everything I’m doing goes in there. I know I have that to the extreme, but I’m sure you have some way your organise your appointments at least.
Don’t try to keep it all in your head – that’s how we get the mental overload. Keep a paper diary, or a whiteboard, or a calendar app on your phone. Whatever works for you.
Obviously appointments will go in there. Maybe also for other members of the household. But you can also use this to plan out time for getting things done.
Schedule an hour when the kids are out for your ‘dealing with quick win tasks power hour’.
Make time for yourself, to do something relaxing.
Plan when you’re going to do the big shop – when the shop will not be jammed.
Turn your top priority to do list into your schedule for the week and month ahead, so that you can see things will have time to get done.
But make it realistic. Planning to file your tax return in the morning, jet wash the patio through lunch, and decorate the bathroom in the afternoon is setting yourself up for a crumbling fail. Be kind to future you.
7. Make time for wellbeing
The big mistake we all make is to keep pushing through when we need to rest. If you don’t look after yourself, you will reach a point where your mind will start pushing back and you will struggle. If you ignore it, you will feel it physically. Eventually, you will have to listen. And in extreme cases, you can do real harm.
Resting is not laziness. Everyone needs sleep. Athletes sleep for 9-10 hours a day in order to cope with rigorous training and diet regimes. Sleeping makes you stronger!
But it isn’t just sleep. You need to do things you enjoy. It nourishes your soul.
Take a, walk
Visit a farm
Visit friends and family
Go clothes shopping
Watch a film
Read a book
Go to a craft class
Play an instrument
Take a bath
Light a candle
Call your Mum
Hug someone
Do some gardening
Anything that makes you feel good, without doing harm, will nourish your soul, and you need that regularly.
And there’s one thing you can do right now to take a worry off your mind – message me to see how I can support your child with their exam preparation, and turn GCSE Stress into Exam Success.
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