IB Math & Physics Tutor: a root cause approach to stuck IB grades.
Renzo Diaz is an IB Mathematics and Physics tutor based in Milan, working online worldwide. His students' documented results include a Grade 3 to Grade 7 turnaround in IB Math AI SL, stated openly in a public Google review, and 19 Google reviews averaging 4.9 stars — each independently verifiable.
A fixed weekly diagnostic system to isolate the root cause and rebuild exam performance.
M.Sc. Energy Engineering, Politecnico di MilanoMensa Italia MemberPublicly documented Grade 3→7 in IB Math AI SL19 Google reviews, 4.9 averageSix years of results, independently verifiable
- DiagnoseLocate the exact microscopic step where reasoning diverged
- RebuildRewire the understanding from the failure point forward
- PerformExecute under exam conditions until the transfer is automatic
What I teach
Exact syllabus coverage.
I don't tutor broadly. This practice works strictly within these specific international curricula
IGCSE Mathematics & Physics (Foundation & Transition to IB)
Who this is for.
The Hardworker Plateau: they study hard, and the grade won't move.
The IB is an anti-pattern exam. It punishes "drilling one problem type" and rewards structural understanding. They understand the content. They put in the hours. But it doesn't test whether they can repeat. It tests whether they understood deeply enough to apply.
The "I'm Not a Maths Person" Myth: a false conclusion, built on a method that failed them.
Somewhere in the last few years they stopped believing they could do this. By sixteen, that belief can harden into a wall — and it often gets in the way of any real chance of improving.
The Bored Misdiagnosis: so far ahead, the classroom has stopped teaching them.
They see where a topic is going while the class is still on the basics. Once the lesson stops challenging them they check out — and somewhere along the way they get labelled lazy. It was never laziness. It's a mind moving faster than the room.
The ChatGPT Crutch: they get the answer right, and can't explain why it works.
In an AI-assisted world, getting the answer is trivial. The IB exam doesn't care if they can get the answer — it cares if they can recognise the underlying idea, explain why the method works, choose it when the problem morphs, and reproduce the reasoning under time pressure without the help. AI gives them the fish. We build the fishing rod.
Four things that make this different.
I don't re-explain. I locate the fault.
When a student explains their confusion, I locate the precise point where their reasoning broke down. Most tutoring re-explains the textbook slower. The real work is finding the exact microscopic step where their logic diverged — whatever way that student's mind works.
A non-negotiable weekly system, not ad-hoc rescue missions.
A fixed weekly rhythm: we work on what's live from school, advance systematically through the syllabus, and open every session with last week's wrong answers — because that's where the real diagnostic data lives. Nothing is improvised, nothing resets, and nothing relies on a teenager's memory.
Total transparency: A searchable video archive.
Every session is recorded, summarised, and added to a searchable archive your child carries through their entire IB cycle. You can see what was covered, what's improving, and what's still open — without ever having to ask "what did you do today?"
Academic coaching, not answer delivery.
AI has made getting the right answer nearly free. It hasn't made the confidence to attempt a hard problem before checking if you're right, the judgement to pick the right method, or the discipline to show up to the same slot every week — that's the part of the work that doesn't disappear.
This works whether your child learns in a straight line or not. And the measure of all of it is simple: a student who eventually stops needing me.
What this looks like in practice
How the work compounds.
This is not hourly tutoring. It is a structured programme aligned to the IB academic year, run in a weekly loop: each session ends with targeted work to do before the next one, and the next session opens with what was answered wrong — not a fresh start. Nothing resets between weeks; that is how the work compounds.
Investment is determined at intake, based on the cadence your child needs and the length of the commitment. Priced as a targeted intervention to protect a six-figure university investment — not an hourly tutoring expense.
In their parents' and students' words
Public Google review · Jul 2024
From Grade 3 to Grade 7 in IB Math AI SL
Aline Pascarelli
IB Math AI SLJul 2024
“As a student who moved from a Level 3 in IB Maths AI SL at the beginning of my IB course to obtaining a Level 7 in my final exam papers, I would highly recommend Renzo. Renzo helped me overcome and understand the difficulties and challenges I encountered over the 2-year program. I am confident I would not have been able to obtain this grade without his help.”
Public Google review
Two subjects, both to 7s
Blake Eustaquio
IB Physics SL + Math AI HLAug 2025
“When I first started working with Renzo in the first year of my IB journey, I was struggling a lot with Physics and Math AI (where my first report card scored 3 & 4). Despite the IB changing the syllabus and creating new papers making class in school a blind test, Renzo adapted fully and helped me bring both classes from low grades up to 7's.”
Public Google review
From no confidence to a 7 in Physics
Leandro Iñiguez
IB Physics SL + Math HLJul 2022
“I prepared with Renzo for both my Physics SL and Maths HL IB exams. I had a lot of problems regarding self-confidence as well as comprehending some of the concepts. Renzo managed to help me navigate through these issues and achieve what I wanted, managing to get a 7 in Physics as well as a 5 in Maths, having been only one mark away from a 6.”
Public Google review
From IGCSE Maths to IB Physics HL
Greta Lotti
IGCSE Maths 0607 → IB Physics HLJul 2026
“One of the things I appreciated the most about his teaching is that he never simply explained the exercise I was struggling with. Instead, he would always try to identify the root of my confusion, taking time to fill in the knowledge gaps.”
Verify on Google →Zero composite characters. Zero AI-generated testimonials. Every review below links to its original on Google, so you can verify the name, the date, and the full text yourself. None of it depends on taking my word for it.
Where our students study
- St. Louis School Milan—Italy
- American School of Milan—Italy
- International School of Florence—Italy
- British School of Milan – Sir James Henderson—Italy
- Metropolitan School of Panama—Panama
- Anglo-American School of Sofia—Bulgaria
- SEK-Dublin International School—Ireland
- International School of Como—Italy
- Kolding Gymnasium—Denmark
- International School of Milan—Italy
What parents usually ask.
A small number of places. One application.
I work with a limited number of students each term — because I personally lead every session, and there are only so many hours in a week. There is no deadline and no cohort: I take students as the right fits arrive. If your child's profile matches what you've read here, the next step is a short application. I read every one myself. If we're a fit, you'll hear from me within 48 hours.
No commitment, and the two intake conversations are at no cost. If I don't believe I can move your child meaningfully, I'll tell you honestly.