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The highs and lows of tutoring

RAISING GIANTS … Some Walvis Bay children have been taught with the help of tutors Ester Joseph, John Shafetango and Elizabeth Andreas. Photos: Taati Niilenge

When Walvis Bay tutors Ester Joseph (33), John Shafetango (30) and Elizabeth Andreas (59) walk the streets of the town, they are often greeted by young and old.

“Hi Sir Johnny, hi Miss Ester, hi Miss Elizabeth!”

The tutors say they get extra recognition during school holidays, when pupils visit to show off their school results, while their phones are flooded by messages from grateful parents.

The highlight of the year is when university students they used to tutor visit them.

The trio often gets together to reminisce.

For Joseph and Shafetango, life as tutors started after Grade 12 when they had no funds to continue their education.

“I was at home, worrying about the way forward, when my sister informed me of an opportunity to help children with their homework.

“I thought I would try it to get over the boredom. What I thought would be a temporary activity to pass time became my passion,” Shafetango says.

The two started working with Andreas, an ex-fishing factory worker who had lost her job the previous year due to the factory closing.

Andreas, who had some previous teaching experience, still had a passion for teaching, which prompted her to start an after-school programme.

“It was a tough start. People only knew me as a factory worker and would not bring their children for tutoring. I started off with only five children whose parents were desperate.

“Their results were so bad, especially in Afrikaans and Mathematics. By the end of the first semester, the children obtained excellent marks.

“Word spread and suddenly everyone started knocking on my door, so I started looking for helpers,” she says.

Andreas says they initially charged a small fee per child as most parents did not earn much.

“Shafetango and Joseph endured and started to earn more, while I still see the previous tutors roaming the streets. It is sad,” she says.

The tutoring programme expanded to youth mentorship and community volunteer programmes to keep the town’s children out of trouble, she says.

Some of the trio’s former pupils are currently studying at tertiary institutions, working, or have joined youth leadership programmes, such as the town’s junior city council.

One former pupil and former Walvis Bay Junior City Council chief executive, Anna Ndara, is currently studying sociology at the University of Namibia, while running some side projects.

“I am fortunate to have been groomed by them. I started a project for boys called Auni Azizi and won the junior changemaker award in 2023. I also serve on the leadership team of a Young African Leaders Initiative programme, and I am a youth mentor,” she says.

Maita Andre, another of the tutors’ former pupils, is pursuing a career in nursing.

“It’s nice to meet them on the street or to visit them. It was especially nice when I was doing my teaching practical and one of them showed up for treatment. I was so proud of myself and honoured to treat them,” she says.

After over a decade of tutoring, Joseph and Shafetango dream of furthering their own studies too.

“It is great to see all our students succeeding, and we would like to empower more of our children. It would be great to have assistance for us to also pursue our studies, but everything costs money.

“Part of our sacrifice involves teaching some pupils for free or at a minimal fee, as times are hard for their parents.

“This has an effect on our own finances,” she says.

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