Girls’ and Boys’ Town celebrates teachers

For six hours a day, five days a week, a teacher is one of the most influential people in a young person’s life, and in honour of World Teachers’ Day (5 October), it is only fitting that we celebrate them as a precious resource.

The youth care organisation, Girls’ and Boys’ Town, celebrates and salutes teachers on this day.

“Working with children is a calling rather than a job and it demands not just technical subject knowledge but a great deal of emotional intelligence, patience and empathy – and teachers deserve to be recognised for being willing to share this with the younger generations,” said Girls’ and Boys’ Town CEO, Lee Loynes.

Lee admits that things such as lack of teaching and human resources are some of the challenges that impact on the access to and quality of education in our country.

“Yet every day we witness teachers overcoming institutional obstacles to ensure their pupils get quality education, and we proudly partner with schools, principals and teachers across the country in jointly addressing the difficulties through training and skills building,” she said.

Their pupils come from many different backgrounds and there is no one-size-fits-all strategy to help them deal with their issues. They’re faced with difficult circumstances outside the classroom, which can negatively affect both their behaviour and their ability to cope with their school work. Yet teachers continue to show up and do what is expected of them.

“On World Teachers’ Day (and every other day of the year) we want to celebrate the profession and raise awareness about the issues faced by teachers. We appeal to the teaching fraternity to continue being the custodians of our education system and for all South Africans to afford educators the support and respect they all deserve,” Lee told the News.

Lee continued by saluting the more than 400 000 teachers who contribute to teaching, supporting and giving a future to more than 12 million South African pupils.

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