IBDP Examiner | IBDP Biology, Chemistry, ESS Teacher and Moderator, | Content Developer at SNC - Pakistan | Head of Science Department at IB Continuum School, Holds BS & MS in Biotechnology with 8+ years of teaching experience.
Limited time offer!
Never miss a lesson due to no balance, and save up to $300 USD on your tutoring cost! Offer is valid until Sep 30th.
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Limited time offer!
Never miss a lesson due to no balance, and save up to $300 USD on your tutoring cost! Offer is valid until Sep 30th.
Learn More
Syed Z.
Country: Pakistan, Rawalpindi
Tutor Bio
I am a professionally trained & certified IB teacher and a high achieving person capable of scientific reasoning and development of new biochemical procedures. I am an educator with 10 years of experience facilitating IBDP, IBCP, A-Levels, IGCSE and O level Biology and Chemistry students in engaging with subject content and exploring its real-life applications, ensuring they develop lifelong learning skills and are well-prepared for their assessments. I am a professional who has been guiding students to consistently produce exceptional grades. As Head of science, I am responsible for both pedagogical and administrative leadership within the IBDP/IBCP programme at my institution. I have been instrumental in leading the curriculum through working with, and supporting, faculty members in their planning and teaching of subjects. I am also responsible for professional development and training for existing and new faculty members. In addition to this, I am a science content creator and a biochemist craving to explore new frontiers in microbiology & biochemistry. Tutor Introduction
Teaching Experience
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2021-Present @ Online Tutoring Platform, United Kingdom
Teacher IBDP Biology, IBDP Chemistry, IBDP ESS
As an IBDP TEACHER, I lead one-on-one tuitions and many mid-summer and spring courses. I have dealt with international students from at least ten countries.
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2014-Present @ Freelancer.com, Upwork, Fiver, Online, Sydney
Professional Freelance Writer
As a writer, I have completed many outstanding projects, completed and published six eBooks.
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2019-Present @ Savemyexam.com, Online, Rawalpindi
Content Creator
As a content creator, I create practice worksheets and notes for IBDP, O-levels/IGCSE, A-Levels, BISE, and FBISE.
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2018-Present @ Torus Academy, Cambridge Campus, Rawalpindi, Pakistan
Lecturer Chemistry
As a lecturer, I am responsible for handling all the lectures for O-Levels, IGCSE, As, and A-2.
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2018-2019 @ Rawalpindi College of Commerce and Sciences, Rawalpindi, Pakistan
Head of Department - Biology
As the head of the department, I was responsible for supervising a team of teachers for all matters relating to the Biology of BISE (Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education). It included curriculum management, lecture observation, timetable management, etc.
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2017-2019 @ Rawalpindi College of Commerce and Sciences, Rawalpindi, Pakistan
Lecturer Biology
As a lecturer, I handled all the lessons and curriculums regarding Biology. Produced 98% results in my first year of teaching. Produced 100% results in my second year.
Education
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International Islamic University, Islamabad, Pakistan
MS Biotechnology
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PMAS Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi, Pakistan
BS Biochemistry
Teaching Skills
Biology
Biology HL
Biology SL
Chemistry
Chemistry HL
Chemistry SL
Environmental Systems And Societies SL
Extended Essay (EE)
Internal Assessment (IA)
Tutor Teaching Style
To me, education is not just getting good grades, but education is the name of continuous learning in and out of the classroom. My teaching philosophy aims to transform students as they learn through dynamic cycles of inquiry, action, and reflection. I enable and support students as they develop the approaches to learning they need – for academic and personal success. I can help students learn new skills and concepts using unique tools and attempting past papers. Being an IB examiner enables me to offer unique insights to my students. I have created more than 500 worksheets with mark schemes which are handpicked IB past paper questions. These worksheets are an integral part of my teaching philosophy and help me gauge with students so that I can have constant feedback and make them practice past paper questions simultaneously. In addition to that, I have topic-wise revision slides and Solved IB Q&A notes compiled to make revision more accessible and quicker.
I will generally do a 15-minute ice-breaker session and discuss the subject combination. I will inquire about the current and target grades to set my goals according to the student's demands. After all this, I will make students answer some basic science questions, which I have arranged in such an order that enables me to have an idea about the student's prior knowledge. We can review essential topics to see how the student gauges my questions.
I usually use the power of my relationship with students to show a passion for learning. When I embody a passion for learning, my students are more likely to have a powerful, positive emotional connection to education that will inspire their motivation to continue to learn. Most of the time, I guide students to imagine how they will feel when they know something new. This is usually done by allowing volunteers to describe their feelings after learning something. When appropriate, I ask students to visualize what a finished project will look like. This encourages students to set goals and develop a learning plan. I also support students in developing their own learning goals that are realistic yet challenging.
While guiding the students, I kept them on task and motivated, allowing them to have some choice and control over what happens in the classroom. This is one of the best ways to keep them engaged. For example, allowing them to choose the type of assignment they do or which problems (numerical, question) to work on can give them a sense of control that may motivate them to do more. Furthermore, healthy competition in the classroom isn’t always destructive; in some cases, I can encourage my students to try harder and work to excel.
While guiding the students, I kept them on task and motivated, allowing them to have some choice and control over what happens in the classroom. This is one of the best ways to keep them engaged. If they cannot understand or grasp the concepts, I usually provide them with numerous worksheets and videos to cement their knowledge and practice exam techniques.
What I found helpful are the numerous worksheets and videos I can provide to cement their knowledge and practice exam techniques. Finally, the notes I gave during the sessions (mind-map style) are handy as the visual aspect has helped several students understand and memorize the connections between concepts.
For many students, facing new material they don’t know, being corrected, and being examined regularly can chip away at their self-confidence, causing them to question their intelligence and ability to succeed. That is why I let them set the pace of the lessons. I try to adjust the pace to my student's needs, which helps them understand concepts they struggled with in other classes. What I found helpful is the numerous worksheets and videos I can provide to cement their knowledge and practice exam techniques. Finally, my notes during the sessions (mind-map style) are handy as the visual aspect has helped several students understand and memorize the connections between concepts.
I have created over 500 worksheets with mark schemes that handpicked an IB past paper questions. These worksheets are an integral part of my teaching philosophy and help me gauge with students so that I can have constant feedback and make them practice past paper questions simultaneously.
I usually use the power of my relationship with students to show a passion for learning. When I embody a passion for learning, my students are more likely to have a powerful, positive emotional connection to education that will inspire their motivation to continue to learn. Most of the time, I guide students to imagine how they will feel when they know something new. While guiding the student, I kept them on task and motivated, allowing them to have some choice and control over what happens in the classroom. This is one of the best ways to keep them engaged.
I can help students learn new skills and concepts using excellent tools and attempting past papers. Being an IB examiner enables me to offer unique insights to my students. I have created over 500 worksheets with mark schemes that handpicked IB past paper questions. These worksheets are an integral part of my teaching philosophy and help me gauge with students so that I can have constant feedback and make them practice past paper questions simultaneously. In addition to that, I have topic-wise revision slides and Solved IB Q&A notes compiled to make revision more accessible and quicker. I have several online tools which I have purchased, e.g., KOGNITY, QUESTIONBANK, DIGITAL, INTHINKING, PAMOJA LESSON SUITE, and much more, which I usually use during my class. I have updated versions of MS OFFICE, MS WHITEBOARD, MS TEAMS, PREZI, ZOOM, and other online learning toolkits.
Tutor Reviews
Joshua from British Virgin Islands
Mr. Zia is an excellent teacher. He has a great personality and is always willing to help and when he is teaching, he makes sure you understand the concept and would answer all your questions and therefore I really enjoy his classes and will definitely recommend him.
Inayatullah from Pakistan
I have been studying ESS from Mr. Zaigham for almost two years and it has been a great experience. He is a very thoughtful teacher who puts a lot of thought into how he presents the material. His lessons were engaging, useful, and he was very patient with everyone in class always encouraging his students to try. I scored a 6 in ESS and I would highly recommend him to anyone interested in learning.
Mael from France
Mr. Syed has been an extremely patient teacher, taking time to explain simple concepts in detail which made the learning environment comfortable and conducive. I was able to score a 6 due to his efforts.
Noor from Germany
Sir Zaigham is a wonderful teacher. I used to be weak at biology as some of my concepts weren’t clear, prior to having him as my teacher. Since he has been my teacher, I have cleared a lot of my concepts and received consistent feedback which has always been specific and detailed. The way he teaches in class is very innovative and he makes sure everyone in the class understands the topic. I always look forward to his classes as I know I’m going to learn something new or clear any misconceptions I have.
Annalia from Netherlands
Hi, I have a 6 in Biology, what I was hoping for. I would like to thank Mr. Syed for helping me out with my IA and final exam practice, it allowed me to strengthen my skills and improve my grade from a 4 to a 6. I would definitely recommend Mr. Syed to all IB Biology students.
Tomas from UK
I got 38 with a 6 in bio. Not quite what I was hoping for but it’s good enough for all of my university choices. Thanks again for your help with tutoring. I felt so much more confident about the exam thanks to you. You were also extremely helpful with my EE which I am very grateful for!
Yaroslav from Spain
Mr. Zaigham (Syed) has an ability that I think is unique to him. I was struggling with Biology, ESS and Chemistry throughout my 1st year of IB. I started tutoring with Zaigham at the end of my 1st Year. I started with Biology and found it really helpful. I also asked him to help me out in chemistry and ESS. Overall, I scored 6, 6 and 7 in these subjects and the credit goes to him. I never knew online learning can help me out this much.
Aman from Germany
Hello, I am just sending this text as an appreciation for what you have given me. I could not thank you enough for your help and great tutoring. I was easily able to improve my grade from 4 to 6 in IB chemistry just because of you. I have a total of 38 but I am glad that I found you in my DP2. I will surely contact in university as I will be taking Chemistry as my Major.
Jessica from UK
Syed is an exceptional teacher. I was hesitant in the start as my daughter Julie had Autism and I was not sure if online learning would help her that much. But I must say the way Syed handled my daughter was out of this world. She was very comfortable with her style of teaching. She was able to score a 5 but considering all the factors I am very happy with Syed. Wishing him all the luck for future.
Eriola from Albania
“Mr. Syed helped a lot to achieve a better score in my chemistry exam. I was struggling throughout the year, however with his tutoring I was able to get a 6 and improve my IA.“
Olga from UK
Syed is a lovely tutor who has helped me upgrade from a grade 3 to a 6! He is skilled at adjusting the pace to my needs which has helped me understand concepts I struggled with in class. What I found useful is the numerous worksheets and videos he can provide to cement my knowledge and practice exam technique. Finally, the notes taken by him during the sessions (mind-map style) are extremely useful as the visual aspect has helped me understand and memories the connections between concepts. He is a very engaged tutor who has the ability to explain the most difficult ideas in an easy-to-understand way. I truly appreciate his immense efforts to improve my knowledge, understanding and confidence in Biology IB. I would highly recommend Syed to anyone - thank you! Olga.
Raiaab from Pakistan
My biology paper went very well, and Alhamdulillah I scored a 7 just because of my tutor Syed. I have been struggling with Biology and he has helped me out through out my DP2. He built my IB foundation and helped me with my tough topics. Thankyou for all the resources and worksheets.
Amrit from Germany
Mr. Syed has really been a source of inspiration for me. He helped me with essential concepts of IB Biology and because of him I scored a 7 in my final exams. His way of teaching really helps the students to understand difficult concepts in very less time.
Tutor Quote
Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that something else is more important than fear.