Ever since I can remember, I have always wanted to be a teacher. As soon as I left school, I attended university to pursue this dream. Working with children and teenagers is my passion. I will never forget the excitement as I approached the classroom on my first teaching day after I qualified. I knew that I had chosen the right profession. After many years of teaching, I came across a child who showed remarkable progress in class. This child told me that she was ‘doing Kumon’! That very day I found out all that I could about Kumon. It was not long before I arranged an interview with Kumon Head Office staff. Kumon was still very new in South Africa but even in the short time that Kumon centres had been operating, Kumon had already established a good reputation. I knew I had found an answer to many of the problems experienced by teachers with large classes and demanding curriculums – individualised study.  I knew that I wanted to be a Kumon instructor.

The passion from the Kumon Head Office staff in pursuing the potential of children matched my ideas completely and so, I embarked on my career as a Kumon Instructor in 1998. One of the most motivating aspects of being a Kumon Instructor is that one never stops learning as an educator. One can never say, ‘I have finished learning’; there is always more to learn. Our key teachers are the children themselves. There are ongoing changes in my centre as the children continue to amaze me. It is not uncommon to find young primary school children studying high school material with relative ease. Pre-school students continue to exceed my expectations by becoming fluent readers before Grade one. Helping to build confidence and a love of learning in children fuels my passion for education.

Being part of the international Kumon community motivates me further. Discussing children and the Kumon worksheets with Instructors from all over the world at international conferences has been especially rewarding. We live in a global village and I feel that it is vital to understand trends and successes in other countries. There is still much to learn from pursuing each child’s potential in my centre through the Kumon worksheets. Each day I look forward to seeing the children at my centre as they grow and achieve.