It has now been just over a week since president Ramaphosa announced the closure of schools, once again. To say I was devastated to hear that, would probably be an understatement. My grade one son was into his third week of being back at school (afer being home due to lockdown, for just over three months), and it has been great for him to get into the new ways of doing school and also connecting again with his school friends. As a parent, I have of course been very much aware of all the frustrations we as parents have been going through. Doing school work with a grade one, who just started to learn the basics about reading and writing, is not a joke. Don’t get me wrong, I have also very much enjoyed spending precious time with our children and imparting more into them as we were forced to be together. Point is, it has not been easy being a parent and be concerned at the same time that your child is not allowed at school, not even to mention allowed to do the sport he or she loves so much. On the other side of the spectrum, is of course the teacher. We all know that in the midst of this, teachers had to act beyond what they know, to make sure that our children received the education needed to be able to still try and save the school year. Many schools are immensely behind and surely will not be able to get through the curriculum. Part of doing my unmasking series, I really had on my heart to do an interview with my son's grade one teacher, as well as the principal of their school. Teachers have been bombarded with either negativity and criticism, and even for myself, it has been great to just place myself in their shoes to try understand what they have been going through in this time. They are people, just like us. They also have families, and because of the nature of their work, like many other sectors, were not prepared for the bomb that struck our country over night. I took the gap to pop into Howick Prep on the 24th of July, the day school closed again, to get a feel of what has been going on in the school environment and do my interviews. Please note all necessary procedures and regulations were followed with these interviews and photos taken. Rhoda Marot (Grade one teacher) Please tell me a bit more about yourself and your career as a teacher. Mrs Marot is married to her husband, Dominique and together they have three beautiful children, aged nine, six and one and a half years old. They have been married for twelve years and mostly lived in the Hillcrest area. They moved to the Midlands about three years ago to have more of a country lifestyle. She did her intern years as a teacher at private schools and most of her teaching career was in the private school environment. She has been teaching for eleven years now. This is her first year at Howick Preparatory School, and it certainly has been an interesting year. ‘I'm really happy at Howick Prep, and it’s great to be part of a warm school with such a welcoming staff.’ What has been your biggest challenge being back at school? ‘With all the new protocol they need to follow as a school, it certainly is challenging. Making sure that all is in place so that learners are safe. There are some children with co-morbidities who have not been able to return back to school as was, so to make sure that they have all they need to be able to school from home has been a new challenge to adapt to. Having a grade one class, it has been challenging at times to make sure children apply social distancing.’ What have you been placing your hope in during this time? ‘My hope has definitely been in Jesus, and a Father that keeps His promises. Being anchored in God. My hope has not been in vain, in something that is movable, but in an unchanging, unmovable, loving Father, who has provided for us and who is not disappointed in any way.’ Any advice you would like to give to junior primary and grade one learners? ‘Keep working hard and give your best. Give the best that you are able to. Have your hearts set in doing what is good, especially towards others. If there is one thing Covid has taught us, it’s that we need to look out to others and not only think of ourselves. I would like to encourage every learner to think beyond themselves and think where they can reach out to others. Listen to your parents, and do all the protocols you are able to do in this time, like keeping your hands clean.‘ Tiny Coetzee (Principal) Can you please tell me a bit more about yourself and your family? Tiny grew up in Durban. He has two older sisters, thus he is the youngest of the three siblings. He is married to Helga, who is also a teacher at Pietermaritzburg Girls High, and together they have one son, who is also in grade one this year. He studied at the Durban Teachers Training College for four years and finished there in 1997. From there he went to Greytown, where he taught for thirteen years and became HOD at Howick Prep for two and a half years. From there he became principal at Athlone Primary and was there for seven years, before he and his family moved to Howick, as he became the new principal at Howick Prep. His biggest love in teaching is Afrikaans, History and Maths. His first passion in life is History. What has been your biggest challenge as a principal in 2020? ‘The unknown, and purely the fact that we don’t know where we are going and what we are dealing with. The goal posts have been moved the whole time. In the beginning, it was especially difficult to tell yourself that this is a long term thing. Initially, we all thought this is only going to last a month, but we then realised that this is potentially going to last years. It has purely been the not knowing what is going on, and how are we going to deal with it. I always say that teachers are ‘box’ people. In that, meaning that as teachers we like our perimeters. We like to have everything in a little box, and to know exactly when and how to do things. It has been a real challenge to get out of that mentality, to be fluid and to adapt to exactly what’s going to happen, minute by minute.’ ‘A teacher knows that they have four holidays a year, they know they have four terms and they know exactly what’s happening within each term. Within that term, you will also know for example it is now time for the yearly play, the cricket tournament etc, and the school runs with that in mind. Our school is very special that we only meet with the teachers once a week, so we communicate via whats app or at the staffroom. There is a routine established, so within the first year of finding your feet and that routine, you know what to expect going forward. Now, suddenly that routine is non-existent.' What has been your biggest fear in this time? 'The biggest fear by far has been that one of our children or staff members will be infected at our school, or potentially lead to a casualty. Another fear we have is that we won’t be able to afford all our teachers. Most of our teachers are governing body paid teachers and we depend heavily on school fees. At this stage the parents have been very good and supportive, we are in a much better position than most schools.' Is there any advice or encouragement you would like to give to teachers and parents? ‘This too shall pass. Whenever we go through trying times, we know that we need to learn from these things and in the long run we will benefit from it. This time has also taught us how to adapt and to not take things for granted.’ Personally, Tiny has loved that families have been able to be together due to lockdown. ‘At the end of the day, we know that those children that come from a tight family unit, are usually the ones that excel in school. If I can give any advice to parents, it would be to use that, and focus on the small things that really count in a family. Do not get caught up in the busyness of routine and neglect the family unit.’ In the words of Atticus in the book To kill a Mockingbird: 'You never really know a man, until you stand in his shoes and walk around in them.'
I would just like to take the opportunity to thank Mr Coetzee for allowing me to get behind my lens and be allowed to share a moment in their shoes. I believe, that regardless of what position we all are in at the moment, it is most definitely one of embracing a year that none of us expected. There has been times of overwhelming fears and anxiety as parents, teachers, but also as children. Thank you Howick Prep for what you guys are imparting into this community and most importantly into our next generation. Thank you to every teacher out there going the extra mile, and not just being a teacher to earn a salary. Being a teacher is surely not only a job, but a calling. I speak God’s blessing over this school and every family involved here. May we all choose love and peace over fear and anxiety. A special thank you also to Mrs Marot for the interview and sharing her heart, and Mrs Tooms (surely a grade one legend), for allowing me to take a few snaps in her class. We really count ourselves and our family blessed to be part of this community and school. May we all learn and grow in this difficult season, to become more of the people we were created to be.
10 Comments
Rhoda Marot
8/4/2020 10:26:43
What a lovely article Michelle! Well done
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Deirdre
8/4/2020 10:50:54
Lovely article
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Hayley Moran
8/4/2020 12:18:09
Very sincere Article, well done for writing such an awesome piece Michelle about a phenomanal people, who are going so far beyond the call of duty to enrich our children's lives. I feel so honored to have my children in this incredible school. Thank you to all involved xx
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Lindy
8/4/2020 12:28:09
Such a great article! Enjoyed seeing Rhoda :)
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Chantel
8/4/2020 12:52:08
What a lovely article. Thanks for reminding us how blessed we are as parents, to have so many amazing HPPS staff invested in the lives of our children.
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8/4/2020 19:58:02
Really great news coming from Howick Prep ...Covid19 protocols are toughest on the primary schools ...well done all involved .
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Fiona Greger
8/14/2020 04:18:22
Well done to Mr Coetzee and the staff team. The thoughtful ways you are ensuring the Covid protocols are met, whilst still maintaining the personal approach, are what makes Howick Prep such a special school.
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THANK YOU SO MUCH
10/31/2023 11:48:21
great
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I'm a passionate photographer based in the KZN Midlands - enjoying life to the full and spending time with my awesome family and friends... photo credit: www.peartree.co.za
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