|
|
Mauritius: Manda Boolell, president of macoss-"More than a teacher, she was an educator"
 |
 |
|||||||||
|
||||||||||
|
|
|||||||||
|
||||||||||
L'Express (Port Louis)
16 October 2007
Posted to the web 16 October 2007
Vanessen Tirvassen
Port Louis
"I began my education at Loreto RCA primary school. Then, I moved to Loreto Convent Port-Louis for my secondary education. I must admit that I still have wonderful memories of teachers who have really helped me in my development. The one who is the most vivid in my memories is Mother Noëlla. I firmly believe that she is the one who has guided me not only throughout my studies, but also in other spheres of my life.
Mother Noella was teaching French. As a matter of fact, she is the one who has instilled into me the love of languages. In addition to this, she would get us involved in choirs organized at schools, in plays and even in sports. She would also encourage us to do things which were not within our curriculum.
At the end of the day, I came out as a student who besides having learnt all the different subjects and getting my certificates, had been taught how to become a good citizen. As a result, I was taught values by Mother Noella, that are still in fact useful even nowadays. It was not only in terms of tolerating others but also respecting others.
At that time, Loreto convent Port-Louis was more or less a kind of microcosm of Mauritius. There were all types of students from different socio-economic backgrounds, from the richest to the poorest. Despite this, we all got along and lived together as one family. I personally think it was thanks to Mother Noella as she always ensured this.
But the most important thing that she has given me is without doubt the passion for reading. Indeed, although books were expensive in those days, she would show us how to make use of the school library and go to the municipality's library or the British Council. As a consequence, I would devour books. I have to say that this was also thanks to Mother Dominique, another great teacher I was lucky to have.
I have to concede that Mother Noella was quite severe. But she just wanted to ensure discipline within her class. More importantly, I would say she wanted participation and full commitment from us in her class. According to me and for many others, her class was highly interesting.
One of the very few bad memories I have from the college is the relationship I had with my former mathematics teacher at the time. I was marked by this, because, as far as I remember, my grades were very good in this subject, until I got her as teacher. This was in Form III. Once, things worsened between her and me, then I told her she would go to hell. But I have to concede that I regretted afterwards.
|
Coming back to Mother Noella, I have to say that I owe her a lot. One must not forget that I am referring to the fifties, and at that time, there was no private tuition. However, she would still spend time with us outside school hours, to do extra-curricular activities. When I recall this time, I realize that, besides being a teacher, she was an educator."
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Copyright © 2007 L'Express. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections -- or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Make allAfrica.com your home page | RSS Feed | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Top | Site Guide | Who We Are | Advertising | Search | Subscribe | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Questions or Comments? Contact us. Read our Privacy Statement. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
