With forty years of experience in the profession as she started to teach in 1978s, Nyirabakunzi says that passion, determination and love of work has been the essence behind serving long period in education.
Lives in Nyamugari Cell, Gasaka Sector in Nyamagabe District, the mother of five started the job after completing high school at Ecole Technique Feminine (ETF) in former Kibuye Prefecture now Karongi District where she learnt tailoring, cooking and hygiene studies.
She started the job at Ecole Familiale Mushubi in Nyamagabe by training girls in tailoring, cooking, working in garden farm, growing vegetables, hygiene and reproductive health among others.
While speaking to IGIHE reporter when she was at work, the passionate teacher said that she loves her profession as it is the foundation of her good-living conditions with her family.
Married in 1983, Nyirabakunzi’s husband died in 1996 leaving the family five children. Becoming the single mother, Nyirabakunzi had to manage the job with raising the children. She says that her job contributed enough in raising her children by providing with them all necessities.
“So, as you understand I continued to raise my children by using the salary from education, I paid their school fees until one graduated in University at the same time with others in secondary school and enjoyed good life conditions. I love this job and I rely on it,” she said.
She said that being a teacher motivated her to inculcate good discipline to her children despite different challenges.
“In my minds was that teacher’s children should study and be well-disciplined to the extent that they become others’ role model,” she said.
{{Outstanding teacher award}}
Nyirabakunzi says that love of work and hardworking enabled her to fulfill her responsibilities and was rewarded a cow by Rwanda Education Board (REB) in 2015.
“I was blessed to get a cow as an award for outstanding teacher, it all started from the school where my colleagues selected me as the best employee, proceeded to the sector and the district,” she explained.
She says that being outstanding teacher in the district was due to her good behaviors at work, timely reporting, having bests performing students and collaboration with colleagues among other factors.
Behind education job, Nyirabakunzi practice acquired skills from high school by tailoring and making wedding cakes among other things that can earn some money.
{{Nothing worth than tutoring a child from scratch}}
Nyirabagenzi says that the first thing that makes her happy is to make a child into a high profiled person.
“The thing which made me happy is to raise a child and become mature, I have taught in every class starting from Primary one to six, it’s a pleasure to tutor children and see them becoming leaders; when you meet them they call you their teacher, it’s really please us,” she boasts.
{{Challenges}}
Though she uses all her efforts to raise children into right people, Nyirabakunzi says that teachers still face challenges like small salary compared to prices on the market. She calls institutions in charge to consider revising the salary.
The teacher of Elementary Technology Sciences (ETS) subject says that shortage of school materials hampers their job, and lack of enough scholastic materials among children deters teachers from providing intended skills as required.
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