ANOOPWATTIE Veeren, informally called ‘Anoops’, is the very epitome of a good teacher. Being in that profession for 53 years now, who better than her can say that two keys to excelling in the field are to: (a) love the children, and (b) view them as your own.

This 68-year-old moulder of character started her teaching career at the Helena Primary School at Mahaica, East Coast Demerara, when she was only 15 years old; and believe it or not, this is the only school at which she has ever taught!
Mrs. Veeren spent 40 years of her life teaching at this very school! And believe it or not, this is the same school, located in the heart of Mahaica, which she attended as a child. Who could have foretold, when her mother dropped a five-year-old Anoopwattie there, that she would be integrally involved in the affairs of that institution of learning for the next 50 years?
“I never left, basically because the school was located a street away from my home. So I bypassed promotions, and my juniors went off ahead of me, because I didn’t want to move. I waited when the opportunities arrived at that same school,” she recalled in an interview with the Chronicle a few days ago.
So, from being an ordinary teacher, she progressed to becoming a senior mistress, then deputy headmistress, then finally headmistress! She retired as a graduate headmistress in 2000.
Even though it was mandatory for her to retire at the age of 55, it did not prevent her from tutoring on a private basis, holding, in the afternoons, classes for students of various schools.

Teaching at 15?
What made it possible for someone to teach at 15 years old back in those days? Mrs Veeren explained: “Teaching at such a young age was possible at that time because, when you finished school, you wrote the School Leaving Exams; and once you passed it, the headmistress made a little class with whoever passed, and have them study for the pupil/teacher appointment.”
Once the individual passed the pupil/teacher exam, he/she was immediately appointed as a teacher, with the conditionality that he/she writes this exam each year for four years. “This then entitled you to enter training college. It was equivalent to four subjects GCE; and after college for two years, you came out as a Grade One trained teacher.”
Having passed through the above, Mrs. Veeren next attended the University of Guyana, and progressed all the more in her teaching career, obtaining several awards for her work. She got a Teacher of the Year award from the Ministry of Education in 1989; the Woman of Distinction Award from the Baha’i Movement in 1999; and the Guyana Teachers Union Award for long, dedicated and conscientious service in 2001.
She was also honoured, in May 2011, for great service in education, and leadership roles in humanitarian work, by the S&S Supermarket on behalf of the people of Mahaica in May 2011.
Mrs. Veeren married the late Leo Jerome Veeren, who had lived one street away from where she was living, and spent 23 years of her life with him. They parented four children; and later, four grandchildren.
Presently, apart from teaching part time, one of her first loyalties is being a member of the Teaching Service Commission, where, she is responsible for the appointment of teachers, having a say in hiring, firing, and disciplining them. Mrs. Veeren is also a Justice of the Peace, Commissioner of Oaths to Affidavits, the Chairperson of the Mahaica People’s Progressive Party (PPP) Group, Chairperson of the Mahaica Women’s Progressive Organisation (WPO), Central Committee Member of the WPO, and Education Secretary of the Regional Body of Region Four B of the PPP. She is also the Chairlady of the Unity / Vereeniging Neighbourhood Democratic Council.

The Greatest Secret
A good teacher is not necessarily one who gets a child to pass an exam. For example, Mrs. Veeren has observed that some teachers look for the brighter children and focus their attention on them. “But you need to go down to the level of the others. You must first find out where the child is, and go down to his/her level and then bring him/her up. You must pay attention to your weaker children, and I think that is the greatest secret in teaching,” she said.
She observed that a good teacher must be patient, love the children under his/her care, and view them as if they are his/her own children. “When a child comes to school, he/she might come with an empty stomach from a home that was full of war and quarrel. You have to find out the background of the child. Most children who misbehave in school are those without parents, who were left with a grandparent who can’t control them.”
Mrs. Veeren recalled that she always wanted to become a teacher, and succeeded at it because she loves children. “And that’s what kept me in teaching. It wasn’t the money. I see children as precious commodities. Children are a blessing, and when we are blessed with them, we should ensure that we make every sacrifice to give them the best healthcare, the best education, and the best of love and attention. Then and only then can we retire in happiness and contentment. For as we begin to fade away along the journey of life, we will be able to look back in admiration at the blooms we have left behind,” she expressed.
The challenge, though, is getting children to attend school regularly and on time. For instance, Mathematics is often the first subject of the day, and so when teachers or students arrive late, this is the subject that suffers. She believes that this is the reason many students fail the subject at CXC.

Nothing as Good
Mrs. Veeren said she was fortunate enough to have had good role models as teachers. She recalled the positive impact her headmaster, Mr. Matadin Ragu, and other teachers like Mr. Majeed Mohammed had on her.
Today, being herself a good role model to younger teachers and students, Mrs. Veeren said there is nothing as good as when she observes her students doing well in school. “When the results come out and you see how happy the children and their parents are, you feel as though you have all the wealth in the world. I always tell people (that) even if I am living in a wheelchair, I might still teach.”
This is the third generation that Mrs. Veeren is presently teaching. “The people I taught in 1961, I taught their children; and now I am teaching their grandchildren,” Mrs. Veeren proudly related.