<B>Mirella Couronne,</B><I> Rector St Andrews</I>

?After having completed my HSC, I started working as an English teacher at Hamilton College in Mahebourg. I had been working at St Andrews College since 1992 before becoming the rector in 2003. I was influenced by my family in my choice of profession. However, I cannot forget the indelible memories I have of my teachers. In fact, they were a major influence as well in helping me to choose this career.

I began my education at the primary school of Notre Dame de la Confiance RCA in Curepipe. There were two teachers there who are unforgettable for different reasons. The first (the one whom I believe was my ?best? teacher) is Miss Lefou. Indeed, she was my teacher for ?la petite bourse?. Her attitude turned out to be the key to success for me. The volume of work she would deliver was enormous. But more importantly, her personality was awesome. Her patience had no limits. She showed herself very dedicated and caring towards us. And she was so inspiring that she managed to inculcate a passion and taste for grammar in me. Her method of proceeding was quite particular as she gave us a really good basic knowledge of the subject she taught. She thus had a very positive influence on me.

Conversely, there was someone who marked me in a negative way. I would prefer not to mention his name, but I can say that he has left me with awful memories. He used to hit students maybe because he thought that it was the right pedagogy to adopt. As a result, I must say that I feel shocked and outraged when I hear that today some trade unionists believe that corporal punishment should be re-introduced as a remedy for certain problems.

As I pointed out earlier, Miss Lefou?s contribution was so conducive to my success that I had the privilege of choosing between going to the Lycée Labourdonnais, the Queen Elizabeth College and Loreto Convent Curepipe (all for free) when the time came to start my secondary studies. I ended up choosing Loreto Curepipe and thus had the great opportunity of coming across the Irish Sister Nora. She was an excellent English teacher and also the head of the college at the same time. She was always very rigorous and demanding and always expected the best from her students. Despite the fact that she had such characteristics, one must admit that everything she did was done with the best interests of her pupils at heart. However she gave me the only detention I ever had in my life! But her teaching method without any doubt helped me to get great results in English.

To conclude I would like to give my opinion about what makes a good teacher. He or she must enjoy contact with young people, be patient, able to show firmness and must always be demanding towards the student but at the same use the right pedagogical approach. Obviously, it goes without saying that the teacher must also treat all students in an equal way.?