DUNDEE KZN: Meliska makes it among Top 10 teachers in the country

Dundee Junior School staff certainly have a recipe for success! Following Susan Joubert’s success in the Solidariteit Office Champion Competition, teacher Meliska Herbst is also making headlines for her exceptional exploits.

Meliska is currently entered into the Solidariteit’s Teacher of the Year competition and is among the top 10 in the primary school category. The winners of the high school and primary school categories will be decided at a gala evening on November 5.

Born in Pietermaritzburg and growing up in Pennington on the South Coast, Meliska qualified as a teacher in 2007, before getting her first departmental post at Gert Maritz Primary School in Pietermaritzburg. She taught there for almost eight years before she and her family moved to Dundee in 2015. For the past six years, she has made a memorable impact at Dundee Junior School, where she currently teaches English Home Language to the Grade 6 learners and Creative Arts to Grade 7.

“Teaching is a calling and the best part of it is knowing that even if you can’t change the world for them, you can try everything in your power to equip them for what it has in store for them.

“There is never a dull moment. Most children have a great sense of humour, and being silly and having fun while learning is what it’s all about for them,” she said.

“And one day, when they are all grown up, they often return and share their story of the positive influence you had in their life. That is the most rewarding part of teaching,” Meliska added.

But the rewards could still be coming when the winners are eventually announced. Meliska is the only finalist from KZN and was selected for the top 10 from over 12,000 entries – a huge achievement in itself. “I was caught completely off guard, as I thought the chances of making the top 20, after being nominated, were very slim… But to make it into the top 10, I am honoured and extremely excited!

Meliska thanks her parents for providing her with wonderful opportunities and guidance to become the teacher she is today; Mrs Joubert for nominating her; and Solidariteit for taking the time to give people recognition for their contribution to their professions.

She also thanks Dundee Junior School, the learners, their parents, and her colleagues who have shown their support; and ultimately, God, who has blessed her with talents she can use in every aspect of her teaching career.

 
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