IGCSE and GCSE · Years 10-11
IGCSE Urdu tutors
First Language and Second Language are distinct syllabuses with different expectations, and heritage speakers are sometimes entered for the one that fits them least. Confirming the entry before any preparation starts is worth the five minutes it takes, because it changes everything downstream.
- USD 20-28 per hour
- One-to-one, online
- Free 1-hour trial class
What IGCSE and GCSE actually demands
The first qualifications that appear on a transcript, and the point at which most families first consider tutoring. Two years, usually eight to ten subjects, and a step up in independence that catches out students who coasted through Year 9.
Offered as a first or second language, with a Perso-Arabic script and a formal literary register that differs considerably from everyday spoken Urdu.
Where IGCSE Urdu students lose marks
- Spoken fluency masking weak control of the written script and formal register
- Nastaliq script written legibly but with inconsistent spelling that costs accuracy marks
- Literary vocabulary and idiom in set texts assumed rather than explicitly taught
- Writing tasks completed in conversational register where a formal one was required
Is this the right subject at this level?
Heritage speakers in Gulf and UK schools whose spoken fluency outruns their written accuracy, and students taking Urdu as an additional language. The two groups need different work, and being entered for the wrong syllabus is a common and costly mistake worth checking early.
What it costs
USD 20-28 per 60-minute one-to-one lesson at IGCSE and GCSE, the same rate in every city we teach in. Billed monthly against lessons actually taught, with no prepaid blocks and no minimum commitment.
Paired lessons (2 students) are USD 14-20 per student. Small group lessons (up to 6 students) are USD 10-14 per student. What each format is good for is here.
How we teach it
One-to-one, online, with a shared whiteboard. The first thing we establish is the exact syllabus the student is entered for: schools do not always publish the version they actually enter, and preparing for the wrong paper structure wastes a term.
After that the work is diagnostic: a past paper under timed conditions, marked together against the published scheme, to find out where the marks are genuinely going. That is almost always more useful than covering the syllabus again more slowly. The full process is here.
Urdu: questions parents ask
My child speaks Urdu fluently. Will that carry the exam?
Only partly. Spoken fluency helps with listening and speaking, but the written papers assess script accuracy, formal register and literary vocabulary that conversational Urdu does not cover.
First Language or Second Language Urdu?
They are distinct syllabuses with different expectations, and heritage speakers are sometimes entered for the one that fits them least. Confirming the entry before preparing is worth the five minutes it takes.
What costs the most marks?
Inconsistent spelling in Nastaliq and writing in a conversational register where a formal one was required. Both are correctable with focused practice rather than more exposure.