ICT tutors for practical skills and course support

Start with what you want to make, understand or do independently. An ICT goal might be a spreadsheet that calculates correctly, a database that returns the right records, or a document that communicates information clearly. A course title and a practical software problem give a tutor different starting points.

In England, the computing curriculum includes computer science, information technology and digital literacy. Its software work progresses from analysing and presenting information at Key Stage 2 to more demanding projects combining applications at Key Stage 3. For school support, bring the actual assignment and teacher feedback so lessons connect to that work.

Cambridge IGCSE ICT combines practical software problem-solving with understanding the uses and effects of technology. For examinations in 2026–2028, syllabus 0417 has a theory paper and two practical papers: one covers document production, databases and presentations; the other covers spreadsheets and website authoring. These details apply to this named course. For another qualification, use its own specification.

Preparation should address both the software work and the explanations you need to give. For a practical task, check the saved output against each instruction and investigate any mismatch. For theory practice, explain why a choice suits the situation in the question, rather than only naming a feature. A tutor-fit discussion should include the practical paper you find difficult and an example of your written work.

Relative and absolute spreadsheet references, replicated formulae and database selection criteria are included in the 0417 syllabus. The two practice examples below demonstrate these ideas. They are constructed teaching examples, not past-paper questions or examiner answers.

In this Excel practice task, put prices of 50 and 80 in cells B2 and B3. Put the discount, 10%, in F1. The sale price belongs in column C. Here, B2 means the cell in column B, row 2; the * symbol means multiply.

Enter =B2*(1-F1) in C2. It gives 45, because a 10% discount leaves 90% of £50. Now copy that formula into C3. Excel adjusts the relative references, so it becomes =B3*(1-F2). Moving from B2 to B3 is useful: you need the next price. Moving from F1 to F2 is the mistake: the shared discount is still in F1.

Correct C2 to =B2*(1-$F$1) and copy it down again. The dollar signs hold both the F column and row 1 fixed. The second formula becomes =B3*(1-$F$1). The results are £45 and £72. Making B2 absolute as well would keep using the first price, so the skill is deciding which reference should move.

For a follow-up, change F1 to 20% and predict both results before checking the sheet. They should be £40 and £64. A useful explanation is: “The price changes with each row, but every row uses the discount in F1.” That explanation shows more understanding than copying the formula without knowing why it works.

Use these invented stock records. Each row is one record; Item, Colour and Stock are fields, and Stock holds a number.

The task is to find red items with at least five in stock. The conditions are Colour equals Red AND Stock is greater than or equal to 5. Only C qualifies. A is red but has too few; B has enough stock but is blue.

Replacing AND with OR returns A, B and C: each meets at least one condition. This is why a query can run successfully yet answer the wrong question. In Microsoft Access query design, put conditions for different fields on the same criteria row when both must apply. Separate alternative criteria rows use OR.

Before running a practice query, mark which records you expect and give a reason for each. As a follow-up, change the request to blue items with at least five in stock. With AND, only B qualifies. Check the meaning of the request before changing the query.

Latimer offers online one-to-one tuition. Microsoft Teams is the default lesson platform, and you and the tutor can agree an alternative. Before the first practical lesson, check that the agreed application opens on your device and that you can view the task while working in it. For exam preparation, confirm the software used by your school or exam centre and discuss any differences from your home setup.

Use dummy information in shared practice files. Keep passwords and private account details out of shared work, and check installation restrictions before adding software to a school-managed device. Open the practice file in advance so an access or file-format problem can be identified.

Each tutor sets their own hourly rate, shown on their profile. Latimer invoices for completed lessons on a pay-as-you-go basis. Agree the lesson length and frequency around the goal, deadline and time available to practise. Check whether any application you plan to use needs a licence before choosing it.