Hello everyone, my name is
Raeez!I feel like education is my calling, and that I've been put here to help others realise their potential and passion. They say, when you open the doors of education, you close those of a prison.
That saying really resonates with me, because I am on a mission to bring positive change to every corner of the world I can reach, whether I go there physically or virtually.
Thank goodness for the internet, which is really bringing us all so close together, wherever we are.
I hope that you book a lesson with me, so that you can begin your learning journey with me, at whichever level you are, I am here to help you and make you confident enough to go out into the world with everything we have learned together, and be great at it.
If you hate being bored, you've come to the right place, because I hate it too. All my lessons are fun and engaging, and incorporates content from entertainment, movies, literature, and just about everywhere else. I believe that linking lessons to something you can relate to, that you personally enjoy, makes it so much easier for you to remember and excel at. Imagine learning a language modelled around everything concerning your favourite celebrity- you would definitely never fail that, would you?
TEACHING BACKGROUNDMy background in teaching began a year after I worked as a director for a theatre production, and the transition was life-changing. I was really thrown into the deep end having never worked in a school environment before. It was also a public high school, and I was really initimdated in the beginning. Gradually, the more I did it, the more it dawned on me how very much alike it was to performing. Essentially, every time I stood in front of the class, I was on stage giving my greatest performance and on that note, I started going to work every day feeling like a star. My students loved me and I formed a really close relationship with them; one based on a mutual understanding, that in order for them to exceed and enjoy school more, they had to do what was required of them.
When I left the school, I had progressed from being the English teacher for grades 8 to 12, with at least 5 classes per grade, and some of them containing as many as 45 students each. That's the reality of public school in Africa.
Following that, I took up the post of English and Business Studies teacher for a private school, and this time my students were all adults who were rewriting their final year of school, for various reasons. Lessons were on Saturday mornings and I had the best time, as I played a teacher and had to respect my students because they were all my parent's age, and even though they called me sir. The eagerness and determination they possessed to change their lives and better their futures inspired me greatly, so much so that when the school closed down it really broke my heart.
Since then I have been tutoring informally, with some of my students being as young as 5, and my oldest being in university. I love teaching because its the only weapon with which you can truly change the world, as Nelson Mandela once famously said.
TEACHING STYLEAs I have previously mentioned, I like to keep things fun, and ensure my lessons are always memorable. I never want to do anything that causes anybody to lose focus or sleep. If that happens, we take a breather, do some stretches, come back and discuss a new route for the lesson to make it more exciting, and then we proceed. I also prefer not to proceed until I am confident everyone understands and grasps what was learned.
I don't read from a textbook or page, and repeat notes, I teach! I am patient, reassuring, liberal, and very non-judgemental. I praise any achievement that deserves praise, and make sure to point out mistakes or mishaps in a way that does not make a learner feel judged or affronted. When I say have no fear, I truly do mean it. My classroom is always a safe place, meant for learning and nothing else.
So whether you are in your 20s, or just 9 years old, please don't hesitate to book a lesson with me. Take a trial lesson and discover a fun, engaging, and memorable education experience, like no other. I promise you won't regret a minute of it. I am new to this platform, and hope that my welcome is rewarded with many potential lessons, and I hope that when we take this step together, we take on the world, and one day wherever you are in your professional journey, a memory of our lessons will surface, and that will be my job well done.
Some interesting quotes:
"Learn as if you were to live forever."
-Gandhi