Aashik Jayswal

Aashik Jayswal teaches mathematics. Most of his students are preparing for SAT Math or GRE Quantitative Reasoning. The rest come to him because the maths itself has stopped making sense, and the work is much the same either way: arithmetic, algebra, geometry and data interpretation, done until they are steady.

He starts every question the same way. What is it asking, what kind of problem is this, and what is the quickest reliable route to the answer. Students who practise that can handle a question they have never seen before, which is most of what the SAT and the GRE ask of them.

A class usually mixes explanation, mental-maths practice, worked problems and a few timed questions. He is clear with students about when to do a step in their head, when to write the solution out in full, when to estimate, when to open Desmos, and when to leave a question and come back to it. In a timed section those choices cost as many marks as the maths does.

After a mock test he goes through the wrong answers with the student and works out what actually happened. A concept that was never solid. A slip in the arithmetic. A longer method than the question needed. Running out of time, or spending four minutes on the wrong question, or talking yourself out of a right answer. Each one has a different fix, so the next few weeks are spent on the right thing.

He has an MBA from IIM Ahmedabad, in Food and Agribusiness Management, and a B.Sc. (Hons.) in Agriculture from SHUATS, Prayagraj. Before teaching he worked in business development, strategy and market research. He has also sat the GRE himself: 334 overall, with 170 out of 170 in Quantitative Reasoning.