You memorised it, but the question is worded differently
The definition is word perfect and the marks still do not come, because the paper never asks for the definition. It asks you to use it on something you have not seen before.
I'm now taking students for Grade 12 and Grade 13
Chemihub
Chemihub
Chemistry that finally makes sense.
I teach A/L Chemistry in Trincomalee town, one on one and in groups, live on Zoom, and as seminars island wide.
- 25
- Years teaching A/L Chemistry
- 5000+
- Students I've taught since 2001
- 90%
- Pass rate at A/L
25Years
The tutor
Nirmal
I've been teaching A/L Chemistry since 2001, twenty-five years now. B.Sc (Hons) Special in Chemistry, PGDE. Around 5000 students have come through these classes, and about nine in ten of them pass their A/L.
I don't believe in memorising. I want you to look at a molecule and know why it behaves the way it does. Classes run in person here in Trincomalee, live on Zoom, and as seminars for student groups around the island.
- 01B.Sc (Hons) Special in Chemistry
- 02PGDE, Postgraduate Diploma in Education
- 03Chemistry teacher, Orr's Hill Vivekananda College, Trincomalee
- 04Twenty-five years of teaching the A/L syllabus, since 2001
Where it goes wrong
Chemistry rarely fails
for lack of effort.
Almost every student I've seen struggle with A/L Chemistry was already working hard. The problem is usually one of these four, and none of them is fixed by studying longer.
Organic is just arrows
Mechanisms become shapes to copy off the board, with no sense of why the electrons move that way.
The theory is fine, the numericals are not
You follow every word of the lesson, then freeze on a mole ratio or an equilibrium calculation.
The three hours run out before you do
You know the content well enough, but the structured essays are still unfinished when the paper is collected. Speed comes from having solved the same shape of problem before, not from writing faster.
How I teach
Four steps, every
single unit.
The same loop runs from the first lesson to the last paper. Nothing about it changes when the exam gets close, because by then it is already habit.
- 01
Start at the concept
I start every unit with the idea behind it. Why does an orbital fill the way it does? Why does a reaction go one way and not the other? I only get to the equations once the idea makes sense.
- 02
Work it on the board
I work problems live, in full, mistakes and all. You see how a chemist actually thinks through a question, not just the clean final answer.
- 03
Practise the same week
I give you a graded problem set with every lesson. I start past paper questions from day one rather than saving them for the final months.
- 04
Track and correct
I mark tests against the real scheme. Everyone gets a personal mark sheet showing exactly which units still need work.
Weekly
Exam and correction
90%
Pass rate at A/L
Classes
Four ways into
the syllabus.
In person in Trincomalee town, live on Zoom, and as seminars island wide. Get in touch for fees and current availability.
01Grade 12 & 13
Individual and Group Class
I teach the full syllabus in person, one on one or in a small batch. An individual class moves entirely at your pace, a group class gives you the back and forth of a real classroom.
- One on one or small group
- In person, Trincomalee town
02Grade 12 & 13
Weekly Common Exam
A 30 minute paper every week, then a full hour of correction and discussion. I catch and explain what is not sticking the same day, not months later.
- 30 minute exam
- 1 hour correction and discussion
03Island wide
Seminar
I run revision seminars for schools and student groups anywhere in the island, concentrated on the units that decide grades.
- Island wide
- Schools and student groups
04Grade 12 & 13
Zoom Class
If you cannot get to Trincomalee town for a class in person, I teach the same syllabus the same way, live on Zoom.
- Live on Zoom
- Join from anywhere
Seminars across the island
What it actually
looks like.
Not stock photos. These are real seminars I've run in schools across the island, from Jaffna and Mullaitivu to Batticaloa.
Books for schools
Books I've written,
released at schools.
Chemistry books released at schools across the island. Each photo was taken at the school it names.
Syllabus coverage
Everything the
paper can ask.
Mapped to the current national A/L Chemistry syllabus
- 01Atomic Structure (அணுக்கட்டமைப்பு) — 33 periods
- 02Structure and Bonding (கட்டமைப்பும் பிணைப்புகளும்) — 35 periods
- 03Chemical Calculations (இரசாயனக் கணிதங்கள்) — 37 periods
- 04Gaseous States of Matter (பொருட்களின் வாயு நிலை) — 32 periods
- 05Energetics (சக்தியியல்) — 37 periods
- 06Chemistry of s, p & d Block Elements (s, p, d தொகுப்பு மூலகங்களின் இரசாயனவியல்) — 65 periods
- 07Basic Concepts of Organic Chemistry (சேதன இரசாயனத்தின் அடிப்படை எண்ணக்கருக்கள்) — 18 periods
- 08Hydrocarbons and Halohydrocarbons (ஐதரோகார்பன்களும் ஆலசன் ஐதரோகார்பன்களும்) — 46 periods
- 09Oxygen Containing Organic Compounds (ஒட்சிஜனைக் கொண்ட சேதன சேர்வைகள்) — 45 periods
Results
The marks, and the
students behind them.
90%
Pass rate at A/L
25
Years teaching A/L Chemistry
5000+
Students I've taught since 2001
100
Students in a batch
Questions
Before you
begin.
No. I start Grade 12 students from the O/L level and build up from there. If you join in Grade 13 partway through, I bring you up to speed alongside the rest of the class.
Get in touch
Questions before
you decide.
I answer most questions myself, usually the same day. Reach out on WhatsApp, by phone, or by email.
- +94 77 237 6146
- Location
- Trincomalee town