What thinking differently looks like in practice.
See what Foci Education students achieve. Band 6 results, ATAR outcomes, and student stories from our English tuition centre in Burwood
THREE HONEST NUMBERS
2023 Band 5+ rate78%
More than three in four of our 2023 Year 12 cohort finished in the top two bands.
2023 Year 12 cohort size18
Students who sat their HSC English examination with Foci in 2023.
students achieving Band 5+, 202314
Of those 18 students, 14 achieved Band 5 or above.
“My ATAR wasn't just a score. It was a testament to pushing against 60,000 students and coming out on top, irrespective of the fact that I didn't have that silver spoon.”
— Leyla Alameddine, Foci alumna (Class of 2021). B Law & Business, Western Sydney University.
Leyla came to Foci during high school carrying the kind of ambition that Western Sydney tends to quietly discourage. She was sharp, vocal, and accustomed to knowing exactly where she stood academically. Foci's small classroom disabused her of that certainty fast. "I went in thinking I was good," she recalls. "And that wasn't a bad thing — but I was at the bottom of that barrel."
She stayed. She pushed through the HSC competing against sixty thousand students across the state, without the advantages that ease the path for others. Her ATAR was not a number on a certificate. It was an argument she made to the world about what was possible from where she came from.
Today Leyla is studying Law and Business at Western Sydney University — a choice she made deliberately, turning down an early entry offer from UNSW to stay connected to the community she intends to serve. She wants to work in personal injury law. Not for the money, she is quick to say, but because it puts her in a position of strength on behalf of people who rarely get to stand there.
“If ever there was a student prepared to navigate the unlit and uncharted currents of intellectual enquiry, it would have to be [I.W.]. After an exquisite process of investigation and selection, her subject, the fragmented self, was settled upon and investigated with impressive sophistication. A clever and engaging conversationalist, [I.W.] provided the year’s most philosophically challenging discussions and it is to be hoped that she can pursue her interest in such matters at tertiary level.”
— Head Teacher of English, Fort Street High School, English Extension 2, 2023
More student stories
Year 10–12 · English Advanced
Jennifer arrived in Year 10 with a 48% average — Band 1. Her writing was technically serviceable and analytically almost absent: essays that moved through a text without ever pressing into it, expression that obscured rather than carried meaning, and study habits that made sustained improvement nearly impossible to lock in.
The work was structural first. Clear expectations on every draft. Homework that couldn't be negotiated down. Over three years, the habits changed — and once the habits changed, the thinking followed. By Year 12, Jennifer was writing Band 5 essays: controlled argument, specific textual engagement, a voice that had learned to commit to a position.
Her younger brother William enrolled at Foci in Year 7.
Tram Nguyễn (Class of 2019)Year 12 · English Advanced · joined 1.5 terms before HSC
Tina arrived 1.5 terms before her HSC sitting in the high Band 4s — close, but not yet writing with the analytical precision that Module B demands. The gap between a Band 4 and a Band 6 in Advanced English is rarely about knowledge of the text. It is almost always about what the student does with that knowledge on the page.
Emma worked essay by essay. Each draft came back with specific structural and analytical notes — where the argument collapsed under its own generality, where the close reading stopped short of genuine insight. The turnaround was not gradual. Tina learned, fairly quickly, that the essay's job is not to demonstrate familiarity with the text but to sustain a proposition about it.
She sat her HSC Advanced English examination and received a Band 6.
Tina Phan (Class of 2023)Year 12 · English Advanced · enrolled one week before trial examinations
Alyssa was scoring in the low 80s — solidly Band 5, with a ceiling she hadn't broken through. She enrolled one week before her trial examinations.
That window was too short for anything except the most direct intervention: Advanced English essays and Module C creative writing, worked side by side. In the creative pieces, the problem was audible immediately. The writing was careful and correct — and it read exactly like that. What it lacked was the quality that separates a high Band 5 creative from a Band 6 one: a sense that a particular human intelligence, with particular preoccupations, had made every sentence. The work became less careful and more considered. The language found a register closer to serious literary prose than to a student demonstrating competence.
Alyssa sat her HSC and received a Band 6 in English Advanced.
alyssa Dang (Class of 2021)Reviews
"Joining Foci Education was one of the best decisions I've made — not only did it significantly enhance my academic abilities, but it also showed me what it looks like when professionals are truly passionate about what they do. Over my three years at Foci, Emma was consistently engaged in my learning journey, always giving 110% of her effort. Both Emma and David brought a wealth of knowledge, not just academically, but also through their valuable life experiences. Their guidance extended far beyond the classroom and I couldn't think of a tuition centre that could replicate what they have created."
— Vivian Yue (Class of 2023)"While academic marks are important, Foci also emphasises learning driven by curiosity. After each lesson, I always ask my siblings about their class experience. Without fail, they share the new skills or perspectives they've gained — from their academic work to literature and even insights about the broader world. I am delighted that Foci nurtures their students in a supportive environment that avoids undue pressure while challenging them to excel. Learning at Foci does not stop at curriculum material, but extends beyond it."
— Gemma Truong (sibling of students)
"I joined Foci Education about 1.5 terms before I had to sit my HSC in hopes of finding an English tutor who could help me achieve a Band 6 in English Advanced. Emma's constructive criticism on my essay drafts allowed me to see the reason why I was considered a Band 5 student. Emma changed the way I wrote by bringing forward new ideas and showing different approaches to understanding prescribed texts. Without Emma's guidance, the Band 6 I received in the HSC would've been out of reach."
— Tina Phan (Class of 2021)"The feedback he gives is detailed and specific, and my kids always come away from lessons feeling like they've genuinely learned something valuable. What I really appreciate is that the learning goes beyond just exam prep — he helps them develop their critical thinking, expression, and understanding of the texts in a way that sticks."
— Lilian Hammoudi (parent of current students)
If you’ve seen enough, we’d like to hear from you.
The students on this page are not the exception. They are what the teaching consistently produces when it is serious, specific, and held to a standard. If you are considering Foci for your child, the next step is a conversation — not a commitment.