To say that Asians prize education is an understatement.
This is especially true for first-generation immigrants like my parents who came to Canada with very little.
I was indoctrinated to believe that those without university degrees would have no job prospects and become homeless.
It took me a long time to realize this oft repeated statement is not true. Take for example, my brother, the mechanic. Also my parents. Neither of them have university degrees and yet they are very comfortably housed.
I’ve come to learn that even non-Asian Gen X parents say such things in 2025. I understand their intentions. Even though not having a university degree does not equate homelessness, the world is unpredictable, and those with degrees have more opportunities and higher earning potential than those who don’t. So really, parents are just playing the odds.
In line with cultural expectation, I went to UBC and got a Bachelor’s in Science (major chemistry) and then a Bachelor’s in Education (secondary chemistry). In total I taught in the classroom for five years, but eventually had to accept that my best work is not done in a school.
Schools need rules, hierarchy, and consistency to function. That makes sense.
But that meant teachers had to fit into a box: here is your role, your script, your checklist.
The problem was: I could not fit the teacher box. I knew I could be an excellent classroom teacher that students loved learning from. But unfortunately the job didn’t end with student learning, and those other tasks zapped my energy.
When I started tutoring, I felt like I no longer needed to put on a “teacher face.”
Students had real problems with their math courses, and I was expected to find real solutions.
As long as I could deliver results, nobody cared how I did it.
Tutoring gave me the freedom to experiment and lean into what I’m naturally good at: seeing the big picture, spotting patterns in student behaviour, and making connections across all kinds of seemingly unrelated ideas.
I work best with students who are trying hard to effect change but haven’t had success with the usual options:
Staying after school to ask their teacher for help
Asking friends for help
Watching YouTube videos
Using AI
Kumon and other systematized math learning programs
Working with tutors who may have meant well, but lacked the experience or insight to make a real impact
Often, these students are dealing with deeper challenges like:
Gaps in foundational math skills that make current topics feel impossible
Test anxiety or emotional blocks that interfere with performance
Executive functioning struggles that make it hard to plan, stay focused, organize, or even start
I help students who have fallen through the cracks of all the usual solutions, and I teach in a way that finally makes things make sense.
When I first started tutoring, I focused on explaining math as clearly as I could. I thought the problem was math. Math is hard. If I could just break it down step by step, more students would succeed.
Some did. They told me I explain well. Their marks improved.
But others still struggled.
I started wondering why.
I explored how students studied math in my absence.
I discovered Barbara Oakley’s work and began teaching evidence-based strategies like spaced repetition, active recall, and retrieval practice.
Some students improved their ability to take tests. But some students were not able to stop procrastinating and leaving homework to the last minute.
Again, I wondered why.
That is when I came across executive functioning research. Suddenly, so many of the patterns I had been seeing made sense.
There were students who could not bring themselves to stop gaming and start studying, or students who constantly mixed up information and steps. Some told me they studied for hours but could not remember anything the next day. Others thought they knew the material but test results showed otherwise.
Explaining math was only ever half the job. The other half was figuring out what other factors were blocking students from achieving their goals and finding a way forward.
When students feel supported in how they learn, not just what they learn, that is when real progress happens.
Q: What kind of students do you specialize in?
A: Motivated high school students who want better results but feel stuck. They’re doing the homework but it’s not clicking. I help them understand why and what to do about it.
Q: Do you work with students with ADHD or other learning challenges?
A: Yes. I’m always learning more about neurodivergence. I meet students where they are.
Q: Are you a certified teacher?
A: Yes. I have a Bachelor of Education from UBC, 3 years of international school teaching experience, and 2 locally. But I now tutor exclusively.
Q: What subjects do you tutor?
A: Math (Grades 8–12, especially Precalculus), and Chemistry 11-12. I’ve helped students prep for exams, catch up from years of struggle, and shift from “barely passing” to “this finally makes sense.”
UBC Kinesiology Student (Grad 2021): Ranked 3rd in his class and now in full “doctor mode” for the MCAT.
Isaac: Went from 70% to his first ever A in Precalculus.
Zahra: From 57% to 77% in Grade 7 math after multiple school moves.
Heba: Was failing Foundations 11; now scoring 16/18 on tests and feeling confident.
Julia: Improved 15% on her second university midterm after just one tutoring session.
Shayla: Was failing Math 8 during COVID, now pursuing an associate’s degree in biology.
Chris: Bright but careless; now gets As in Chem, Physics, and Math thanks to enforced “show your work” rule.
Noah: Hated math; now scores 91% and treats it like a game.
