Teacher Profile

Dr Rod Freeman, BA, MLitt, PhD, PGCE

Classics (Greek, Latin, Classical Civilisation, & Ancient History)

I hold a BA in Classics from the University of Bristol (1993), an MLitt in Classics with Distinction from the University of St Andrews (2009), and a PhD in Latin literature from the University of St Andrews (2013). I also hold a PGCE in Classics from the University of Cambridge (1995).

The study and teaching of Classical languages, literature, and culture is very much ‘in my DNA’. Both of my older siblings studied Classics at university, and my maternal grandfather was a secondary-school Classics teacher for the duration of his working life. I therefore felt naturally drawn to these subjects from an early age: I began studying Latin at the age of eight and Ancient Greek at the age of eleven. I immediately felt a natural affinity for these subjects that took me through A-Levels in Latin and Ancient Greek and has stayed with me ever since.

I have spent my whole career to date tutoring and teaching Classics. This has been in a wide variety of contexts: as a teacher in many different state and independent schools and colleges, including as Head of Classics at King’s Ely (founded in AD 970); as an undergraduate tutor; and as a private, online tutor. Since 2016, I also work as an Examiner and Moderator for the OCR exam board.

Since I entered the teaching profession in 1995, my Christian faith has informed and shaped my teaching in various ways. I have always aimed to show concern for the general welfare of all my students, while recognising that my primary role is to promote and assist in their academic development. I aim to make academic learning an enjoyable process, and encourage oral participation from all students in lessons. I also encourage all of my students to talk openly and constructively about their own academic progress. Moreover, as a committed Christian as well as a professional teacher, I feel a particular concern to enable home-schooled students from Christian families to fulfil their academic potential and succeed in formal, public examinations. I also recognise that there is a particular advantage in studying Classics from a Christian perspective, which allows for a wider historical perspective for engaging with the Old and New Testament Scriptures. Furthermore, since Latin became the lingua franca of Western Civilisation and particularly the theological tradition of the Western Church, one can recover a connection with Medieval and Early Modern Christian literature.

My love of Classics began with a fascination with the complex inflections and patterns of ancient languages, and a recognition of the immense influence of these languages on English and other European languages. But over time this has broadened into a wider appreciation of the literature and culture of ancient Greek and Roman societies. This is indeed one of the unique attractions of studying the Classical world, in that it offers up such a wonderfully diverse breadth of academic study.

The study of the Classics is as valuable today as it has always been. Its influence on modern society has been as profound as the influence of the ice age upon our landscape. Moreover, the study of all the Classical subjects – particularly at A-Level – develops analytical skills, critical thinking, and communication skills, all of which are highly valued in a range of fields of employment. Qualifications in these subjects are increasingly rare nowadays, as many students pursue narrower ‘utilitarian’ subjects, but they stand out as a strong indication to universities and employers of academic prowess and rigour.

I offer the following PX Classroom courses:

A-Level Greek  &  A-Level Latin

These are both two-year courses undertaken with the OCR examination board.

These courses deliver a demanding and stimulating intellectual and aesthetic experience. Practice in translating unseen passages and the reading of prescribed set texts develop rigour in the close analysis of language, sensitivity to nuances of meaning and style, and critical skills in wider areas of literature. The understanding of how language works and how it can be used is an enormously valuable personal education. At the same time these subjects enable students to gain a broad understanding of how people whose life and culture were crucial in forming European civilization, behaved and expressed themselves in areas such as politics, love, and war. Lessons are mainly spent reading and discussing sections of the prescribed texts, which students prepare in advance, and this leads to regular written tests. There are also essay assignments at regular intervals.

A-Level Classical Civilisation  &  A-Level Ancient History

These are both two-year courses undertaken with the OCR examination board.

These courses deliver a similarly exciting intellectual and aesthetic experience, and enable students to develop powers of analysis in the reading and interpretation of Ancient Greek and Roman literature in translation. Students therefore have the opportunity to penetrate the mindset of the ancient Greeks and Romans and to foster an awareness of how these cultures have shaped the modern world, thereby seeing our own culture in perspective. Lessons are mainly spent reading aloud narratives and dramas, and discussing them. There is a regular programme of written work – both short-answer questions and essays – to consolidate knowledge and to practise writing about texts.

Private Tuition in Classics

• If the PX Classrooms timetable does not work for you, or you need supplementary help, we can come to our own arrangements.
• Greek, Latin, Classical Civilisation, & Ancient History tuition for the OCR AS- and A-Levels.
• One-to-one online tuition at a time to suit you.

Testimonials