How A Team Tuition Tutors Are Transforming Gold Coast Students

How A Team Tuitions Gold Coast Tutors Transformed Two Students From C- to A Grades in 3 Months!

Our Tutoring Scholarship Students' First Term Results Are In!

A Team Tuition have officially transformed Skylah Rhambold from a C- student to a straight A student and Waide Carson from a C- to a straight B student in one school term! You won’t believe what the difference was between the two…-

To provide some background, my name is Hayden McEvoy and I am the founder and owner of A Team Tuition, a Gold Coast tutoring company that has 75 tutors and over 1200 students. My mission is to change the way education is done by teaching the secrets of A-standard students, so that everyone has equal opportunity to succeed.

-I was a failing student until Year 9, where I underwent a personal journey to become an A-standard student. By Year 10 I had discovered the secrets to Academic Success, and achieved my first ever straight A report card.

-A Team Tuition is not just a company – it is a movement. We want to single-handedly change the Australian education system, as it is currently letting down masses of students in the way it is presented. It possesses a one-size-fits-all mentality, where students are sculptured to believe that if they don’t get A’s naturally, they never will. Our philosophy is that any student, anywhere, can achieve A grades with the right strategy, support and attitude.-

Hayden McEvoy Presenting to Parents on Elite Academic Performance at Emmanuel College on the Gold Coast.

"Achieving an A grade is not a test of IQ. It is a test of resiliency, strategy, dedication, drive and commitment"

Hayden McEvoy

Ultimately, these traits help shape success in the real world outside the classroom. Elite performance across any area of life encompasses these same values, and we will be the first people to bring this philosophy into education.

-To prove our philosophy is sound, we began a project titled Project Limitless. Its purpose was to find a failing student, offer them our services, and observe as they transformed into an A-standard student. I personally witness similar transformations every week in our business, with hundreds of students becoming A-standard students. I wanted to showcase this to Australia publicly, and provide an example of how the education system should be conducted.

-To do this, we partnered with local Gold Coast school Miami State High School. We then ran a competition, where students applied for a Transformation Scholarship, valued at $5,000. This scholarship provided them with all of A Team Tuition’s services, with an individualised program that gave the student every possible opportunity to rise to an elite academic level.

-The program we ran encompassed the following components:-

• 3 Hours per week of tutoring with an A Team Tuition Academic Personal Trainer
• Customised Academic Strategy plans, created and customised for both students
• Parenting Workshop, where A Team Tuition’s resident parenting psychologist educated and mentored the parents in strategies. These strategies were implemented behind the scenes to allow for the platform for growth
• Fortnightly meetings with the Academic Personal Trainers in regard to strategy and progress
• Motivational induction session, where students’ confidence and mindset were developed and worked on. To become an A student, one must firstly believe they can become one.

-These have all attributed to Skylah and Waide’s incredibly fast results!

-Surprisingly, we still have 3 performance psychology sessions, a lunch with OP1 students, and 60 more hours of tutoring up our sleeve that we haven’t used yet. We were essentially able to attain these incredible results with as little as $2,000 across the three months. The insane results of this project are now challenging even our beliefs making us think, how far can we really push these students? For instance, with Skylah, we are now considering the potential of her becoming dux of her grade by the end of the project.

-Therefore, we have once again proven that transformation is possible for students and parents, even within financial limits. It doesn’t need to take hundreds of thousands of dollars for change to occur – it is completely possible if the entire team is on board, and implements the strategies required for change.

The question I’m sure you’re asking, though, is: how? How on earth did we get such transformation in such a short period of time? Well, once again, I will stress the importance of strategy and support for students within schools.

-Skylah was an E-standard student at the start of the year, and now 6 months later she is the dux of her Maths class. Additionally, she has risen to within the top 5% of her entire cohort within 3 months!-

Skylah Rhambold and her Tutor from A Team Tuition, Libbie Rowley-James.

-Waide is an autistic student who achieved his first ever C- earlier this year, and has now improved to straight B grades. He has single handedly helped prove that having a behavioural disorder does not mean you can’t dominate within your academic results and improvement.

-Watch this space closely – Waide will be an A student by the end of this program.-

Waide Carson in a tutoring session at A Team Tuition with his Tutor Malcolm Schulstad.

-So what now?

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Skylah Rhambold’s Amazing Results

Starting Grade: C- (E Grades in January)

Term 2 Grade: A’s

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A Team Tuition's latest superstar straight "A" student, Skylah Rhambold!

-Wow! Incredibly, Skylah has proven to the entire education system that it is possible to jump from a C to an A in a single term, given the right strategies and support. Skylah’s school originally was unsure towards Skylah being able to achieve A’s, and it was one of the most satisfying feats for the entire team to see her achieve straight A’s in her first term on the program. Ultimately this is the beginning of the movement to prove the current social education perspective wrong - success in schools has nothing to do with IQ or talent.

-It is 100% the strategies and support that is utilised for each student. Ideally, the aim is to change the perspective of students, parents, teachers and schools to reshape and rethink their policies and teaching methods, to account for Academic Strategy and support for every student. We know that any student can achieve the same success with the same support.-

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Skylah’s Personal Insight

After catching up with the new elite academic Skylah, she has commented the following on her progress thus far:

-The difference between C- level Skylah and A level Skylah is that I feel more confident during maths class and I can participate more in class discussions. The reasons for the grade jump was definitely the help and support from A Team and having Libbie just to be there and pick up the little things I did wrong and guide me in the right direction. My goal for Term 3 is to nail all my subjects and to get an A+ in maths! This experience has changed me as a person as I no longer have anxiety or stress about maths which I believe was an issue that contributed to my school work and grades. Having this scholarship has really changed my life and I'm so grateful to Hayden!

-We are now looking ahead at what Skylah will achieve now. After meeting with her recently, she informed us that she has moved from the lowest math class, all the way to the top advanced math class in the grade!

-Her latest goals are now to dux the class in Term 3, and ultimately start paving the pathway for her to lay the foundations for achieving the dux of her Year 12 cohort in 2020. Ultimately, this achievement has now opened her mind up to the possibility that she can undertake any career path she wants.

-Originally, Skylah’s goals were to try and graduate high school - after a single term with our Gold Coast Tutor, she now wants to dux the entire school! After seeing such rapid improvement, this goal is certainly within reach. All of Skylah’s subjects have increased to a A grades – the only subject that still requires improvement is English, wherein she maintained a C.

-The program itself only focused on Maths; however, the Academic Strategy implemented naturally affected Skylah’s other grades as well. English, however, requires a completely different focus; therefore, we will be looking to pair Skylah with an English specialist tutor, who will teach her the ultimate secrets to English.

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Insight from Skylah’s Parents

Skylah’s parents were over the moon. They commented on her progress thus far:

-Explain the difference between C- level Skylah and A level Skylah?

Skylah’s confidence has grown immensely since she started tuition with A-Team, she is practicing rewarding study habits.

-What do you think were the key reasons for the rapid grade jump?

There is no doubt that the number one reason for Skylah’s rapid grade jump was the tremendous mentoring of Libbie. The positive relationship that has been built between Libbie and Skylah has in no doubt been beneficial to Skylah’s progress.

-What are your goals for Term 3 now that Skylah has already hit A's ?

To continue the same pathway, and be supportive parents with collaboration from A-Team Tuition.

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Insight from Skylah’s Gold Coast Tutor Libbie

1. Describe Skylah when you first started with her, v.s. now that she is an A student?

Skylah has always been a lovely girl, let alone a lovely student - what I have noticed is the change in confidence with this girl!

When I first met Skylah, she was very eager to take everything on (which is one of her major contributors to her success). However, I was saddened by the lack of confidence this obviously talented girl had. To be honest, I really didn't blame her - she was stuck in a maths class with a lot of students who simply didn't care.

For Skylah, she absolutely cared – it was simply her results on her previous tests that landed her in this position. We had a few chats about how students should be placed in classes based on effort grades, not achievement grades.

Leading up towards her exams, I saw her confidence grow session by session. Now, this girl is unstoppable, with all the hard work and the straight A's on her maths exam - she should be confident. I couldn't be more proud of her. Skylah is truly an amazing girl.

2. What do you think was the main reason for her incredible results?

I truly believe her success stems from three important factors:

A. Open Minded Attitude

what I adore about working with Skylah is that she is so open with trying new things! Skylah took everything I said on board - now this doesn't mean just "doing what you were told".

Skylah asked questions, about how study works, why Maths concepts lay out in a certain way and always asked is there anything else she can do at home outside of tutoring! This is every tutor’s DREAM - to ensure that a student is so willing.-

B. Consistency

Skylah was one of the most consistent students I have ever worked with. She never missed a tutoring session! We did 21 hours of tutoring together over half a term and she never missed an hour. Over the years of working with students, the students I've seen the largest leaps and most sustainable grade jumps in is the students that NEVER miss on an appointment.

Now, that comes with the tutor making sure they are also too willing to never miss a session. For me, I have never been a morning person and getting up before 6am to get ready was hard for me. However, Skylah was a student that was definitely worth the early morning for.-

C. Honesty

Skylah was an open book from the start of the whole scholarship process;  from her written application, to the in person interview and the first tutoring session. Skylah was always willing to open up about her goals, her strengths, and most importantly, her weaknesses. The more information we know as tutors, the better we can help students.

We only see students for a couple of hours every week, so in a short amount of time we have to try and grasp what a student's whole learning week looks like. When a student is closed, it becomes very challenging for the tutor to individualise their approach with the student. I guess the honesty has to be established from trust from the tutor and trust that the process will work, beside anything that's happened previously, no matter how bad the grade or the feeling.

3. What's next for Skylah, what are your goals with her? 

For Skylah, I am really looking forward to taking her into the next phase of her learning process, which is for her to become increasingly more independent in her studies. There, she will be able to guide herself through the learning process from Week 1 to Week 10 throughout a term.

This can only be done when a student truly and confidently believes in their judgement. After a cracking result from Term 2, it should become easier for Skylah to trust her talents and abilities as a student, and thus trust her judgement on her new found strengths, plus her weaknesses and possible ways to fix them.

It's very easy to assume that the results Skylah achieved was purely done by the tutoring alone. To be completely frank with you, Skylah did all of the work. As a tutoring entity, we gave her the tools to show her how to do well and then, it was up to Skylah whether she wanted to listen to that information. As we can see, not only did she take that information - she ran with it.

For me, the only hardworking I had to do was to get up before 6am every Tuesday morning.

I have never met a student who, in 6 months, transitioned from an E student to an A student! What a truly incredible outcome. I am thoroughly looking forward to not only what she can achieve this term, but throughout the rest of her schooling career!-

Libbie Rowley-James and Skylah Rhambold at Miami SHS on the day of the Scholarship Announcement.

Insight from Miami SHS – Mr Jason Cross

It has been a very exciting journey with A Team Tuition; from the promotion of the scholarship opportunity to now seeing the results that can be achieved when a student has the support required for them to achieve to their full potential.

We did not expect to see such a rapid transformation in either students' academic achievements and it is great to see what impact a holistic approach to a student's learning can have. Miami High is extremely proud of both students and we look forward to seeing where this journey takes them.

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Waide Carson’s Strong Results

Starting Grade: C- (First Ever Passing Grade in January)

Term 2 Grade: B

Strong C- to B grades for our male scholarship student Waide Carson!-

Within A Team Tuition, I have seen countless students jump incredible heights in their grades. Some have gone from D’s to A’s, or B’s to A’s, or D’s to C’s. No matter what the lengths between the two, the student has always, always felt proud of their accomplishment. It is one of the greatest parts of being the CEO of A Team Tuition – hearing students’ feedback and joy at their improvement, no matter the lengths.-

Of course, there are definitely factors that affect grade jumps. Skylah already had a strong foundation, with high motivation to succeed in her studies. With Waide, our main focus was not on grades, but on him personally, as an individual. It was completely necessary for us to develop a strong foundation, while still providing academic assistance through tutoring, to allow Waide to begin succeeding.-

There is a distinct difference between Academic Strategy and tutoring. Tutoring can only get you so far – either to a slightly higher level, or keeping to the same standard. It is absolutely necessary to implement specific strategies and processes on top of tutoring – something A Team Tuition is 100% focused on achieving with their students.-

However, it’s impossible to do when the student is personally lacking motivation.-

Waide, while being marked for great potential and achievement, needed to develop in key foundational areas before he would be able to undergo specific Academic Strategy. Early on, his tutor Malcolm identified Waide’s low motivational levels, and throughout the term, they set their eyes on raising it up. Without this, it would be impossible for any student to raise their grades.-

I am incredibly proud to say that before long, Waide had vastly improved his motivation – and it began to show in his work. His newfound motivation was a planted seed, and throughout the rest of the term, it grew and grew. Waide is now ready to begin implementing necessary Academic Strategies, and raise his already high achievement of a B grade all the way up to an A.

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Personal Insight from Waide

Before I start, massive shout out to the many people who have helped me on this journey. From friends and family, to Malcolm, to the amazing artist whose music kept me sane. -

Going from a C- to a B in school is truly an achievement.  Coming from a someone who has never gotten a B or higher in anything like Math, English, and Science, it truly was an amazing feeling when I had been given that final exam paper with my marks, knowing I put in the best effort, and receiving such an impressive mark. -

I believe that one of the main reasons I achieved this was the motivation I had received from my amazing tutor. Malcolm is a truly amazing man, wise in such a way that'll make you think about what you need to do. He taught me the proper ways to study, how to find the motivation to do what I need to do, and think about why I'm doing it.-

Having developed the skills I have, my main goals for Term 3 are to increase that B to an A or A+. Being in Grade 10, it is crucial for me to try an accomplish this for the selections of my grade 11 subjects. But I do believe that again with the skills I have developed with Malcolm I can achieve these goals.-

Being chosen for this opportunity has changed my life. It has given me a sense of hope that I can actually do well at school. Before being chosen, I had thoughts of leaving school. But with this, I have been given a change of thought with the fact that I can do it. This experience has changed me in many ways, from the person I was, to whom I am now. This project has given me confidence among many levels and having the amazing crew of A Team Tuition on with me on my journey, it truly has been an amazing experience of a lifetime.

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Insight from Waide’s Parents

Waide’s parents were over the moon. They commented on his solid progress thus far:-

Insight from Waide’s Tutor Malcolm

Waide Carson in a Tutoring Session at A Team Tuition with Mal Schulstad.-

When I first met Waide, despite being super excited about receiving the scholarship to help him get better grades, I don't think he really believed that he could achieve much better results than what he was currently getting.  After spending a few weeks focusing on getting the first Level of the CAS program in place we really focused on Waide's motivation.-

Originally Waide was in a "let's see what happens" mind set - he really hadn't decided to actually "do" better, which I think was because he didn't want to disappoint himself in case he didn't get the results he was after.  His thinking was that if he didn't get a grade improvement, it was because he didn't really try as hard as he could.-

Around Week 7 of the term Waide made the conscious decision to do the best that he could.  He began to create a Neurobook, engaged even more in class, started to revise work, and began to challenge himself in what he could achieve. Waide's parent seemed to also become a lot more actively engaged through the term, particularly after the parenting session with his progress.-

I'd say that it was only in the last three weeks of the term when Waide began to get his head into the right mindset and commit to what he could really achieve.  His results reflect the effort he put in and the support he received from his family towards the end of the term.  It will be exciting when he's fully focused for a full term!-

Insight from Waide’s Teacher, Eric Schultz

I believe Waide was determined to do well this year and the scholarship has confirmed his own self belief that he can achieve good results. Also, previously Waide has tended to rush his work and not think the question through. Recently, he has slowed down and made sure he understands what the question is asking.-

The recent tutorials have helped him prepare for the exam. He told me on the morning of the exam that he had spent time with his tutor getting ready for the exam. Again, I believe this really helps his self-confidence and reassures him that he is prepared to do well.-

Into the coming months I think the tutoring will assist Waide to apply the work we are doing in class and help him think the concepts through.-

Why Did This Work?

The next stage of moving forward with our company’s mission is identifying the key critical factors of why this program worked so well and so quickly.-

The following key success factors are of paramount importance, and must be considered continuously throughout the term for a student to truly transform:

1. Having a Structured Study Plan

A study plan leads to confidence and embodiment of an elite level student. It also acts as knowledge building blocks, which pave the way for future learning and content retention.-

2. Strong Mentorship and Guidance

Bad study habits take a while to break. Therefore, mentorship and guidance from outside sources are quite necessary to help students not only break them, but also develop new, better habits. Our Gold Coast Tutors are more than just tutors, they are mentors that provide guidance for your child.

3. Academic Strategy

A specific strategy empowers students, as it puts them into the driver’s seat and allows them to take control. It eradicates the belief that A students are superstars or super talent, and promotes that hard work creates results. A student can control how hard they work - they can’t control their level of “talent”. Therefore, the focus must be on their effort, and a change in their self-belief.-

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4. Connecting the Elite Team

Parents, tutor, student and teachers are all key members of the team behind academics. The strength of the support base created allows a student to flourish; they cannot do so without the backing and belief of the team. This also holds them accountable, as the entire team is relying and investing into them. When times get tough, students must have a team to lift them and push them back on track. Most students are not mature enough to do this on their own – they therefore get lost in difficult or challenging times. Our services help account for this, and provide students with safety and security.-

5. Educating and Training the Parents

A critical success factor. Parents can be the greatest liability and the greatest asset of a child. They usually want the best for their children, but unfortunately sabotage them through incorrectly managing them – for example, micromanaging, or focusing on outcomes and not effort. This can create anxiety and unnecessary stress on the student, which will ultimately lead to them not performing when they need to due to fear. When the right parenting and home environment is fostered, students can go into exams confident and excited to see what they can do as opposed to fearing failure or under performing.-

6. Teacher feedback

Teachers are an invaluable resource. Utilising the teacher’s feedback can be one of the most effective ways a tutor can plan and strategise. This is because a teacher is a trained professional, who understands the learning process. They see the student and their behaviour/effort for who they are, and can be an incredibly encouraging tool for students.-

7. Additional Strategy

Various strategies play a part in a student’s journey – and not just academic learning strategies, either. Exam strategy ensures that a student doesn’t bend under pressure, and assignment strategies ensure they fulfil all expectations and requirements set before them. Additionally, forming strategies around a student’s nutrition and general life mentoring allows for the body and mind to work at its maximum potential, and thus learn not only faster, but also better.

8. Consistent Bread and Butter Tutoring Sessions

Finally, don’t forget the added benefit of tutoring itself, which is essentially the customisation of the learning process to each individual student. Tutoring is not merely enough; it was the consistency of sessions that allowed for the results. Both Skylah and Waide attended 100% of sessions and never missed a single class, thus allowing them 100% chance of learning and ultimately performing.-

-The most important thing to note, throughout all of this, is that Skylah and Waide are, at their core, normal people. They are kids in high school, with dreams and visions and goals for their futures.-

This scholarship opportunity has allowed them to dream bigger, stronger, and greater than they ever have before, and has unlocked parts of their future they never would have dreamed for.-

The same is possible for any student with A Team Tuition - anywhere, at any time.