Valentina Alexandraki

How the idea was born

The idea came from the students themselves, through fifteen years spent in private education.

“What I have observed over all these years, trying to help each of my students individually, is that students fall into two broad categories. There are those who understand easily and quickly and need a reason to push on and become even better, and those who struggle with the mathematical concepts taught at school, most likely because of gaps from earlier years that they have never managed to close.

What is surprising, however, is that the long-term result — for the majority of students — is exactly the same. Inertia. Students with well-developed skills, seeing that they are above the average, relax, and in the end do not develop as far as they could. Equally, students who struggle become discouraged and stop trying, never reaching the level they could have reached.

Studying those behaviours over the years and running countless ‘experiments’ in how I taught and approached them, I arrived at a single conclusion: every child needs motivation and recognition. Each one is ready to chart their own course, and the challenge is to help them climb as high as they can, according to what they want and how consistent they are.

Personally, I have stopped believing in the ‘good’ and the ‘bad’ student. I have seen ‘bad’ students set goals (motivation), work methodically (consistency), accept help (guidance) and genuinely surpass themselves (result). And I remember with sadness promising students who overestimated their ability, never organised themselves, never worked systematically, and were disappointed by the outcome in the end."