Maths Tutor Belinda Davies volunteering with children in South Africa
I joined Home-School Tutoring Oxfordshire and Berkshire in April 2017 after a motivational conversation with Carolyn Watson, Area Advisor for the area.
My educational background is that I achieved a MSc degree in Meteorology (essentially a Maths MSc) from Reading University and subsequently worked for the Met Office as a Dispersion Scientist for 25 years (a Dispersion Scientist works out how pollution is spread in the atmosphere).
I had discovered a passion for tutoring whilst working and volunteered to teach Maths at a local school as part of a School Liaison Scheme. I completed the STEM and Mentoring training in February 2016 which further fuelled my passion and I decided to reduce my hours and ultimately leave my Dispersion Modelling job in 2017 to become a full time Maths and Physics tutor up to GCSE level.
In 2019 I was confident enough to offer my skills to provide Maths tutoring in South Africa in a township called Smutsville, close to Sedgefield and Kryma at the Masithandane Centre, a non-profit and public benefit organisation in the Eden District.
Back in 2007 a need was identified to establish a literacy and numeracy project in the Sedgefield Primary School because the level of illiteracy and numeracy was high. As a result the local volunteers meet twice a week to help the reading, writing and numeracy skills of the primary school children. The Centre has built partnerships and works in collaboration with the public sector and local organisations for local people. The local population is unskilled and unemployed which in turn leads to crime, drug and alcohol abuse. The incidence of HIV/AIDS and TB in the area is sadly also prevalent.
I feel passionate about my work with the children which I find very rewarding. They can relate to me, following encouragement and gentle nurturing, and have consequently really improved their levels of numeracy and literacy. I will be saddened to leave the Centre later this year although I will keep in touch to follow their progress in the coming months and years.
On my return to UK I will look forward to resuming my tutoring with Home-School Tutoring Oxfordshire and Berkshire.
How to Apply to Become a Tutor with HST
If you are an exceptional teacher who is interested in tutoring opportunities with HST Oxfordshire and Berkshire, Carolyn Watson will be pleased to hear from you. Please click here to find out more about tutoring for HST or contact Carolyn on 07506 117169 or [email protected] to request application details.
Each tutor who applies to join the HST Oxfordshire and Berkshire must provide certificates for their qualifications and references and undergo an Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check before they are accepted. They must also prove they share HST’s aims and values.
