‘It’s more than a job, it’s a calling’

The Educare Centre at the University of Cape Town (UCT) on a breezy autumn afternoon is unexpectedly peaceful. The children aren’t scrambling about in the playground, or singing nursery rhymes in their classes, and there’s no immediate sign of the teachers either.

But on closer inspection, which requires a peep into the first classroom, the silence is explained. Tiny mattresses covered with white sheets line the floor, and the little ones are lying down peacefully for their daily snooze.

“It’s nap time,” whispers teacher Buyelwa Caroline Sishuba from behind a door.

Sishuba is on a short break in the staff tearoom and has just a few minutes to chat to UCT News before the children wake.

“They’re normally peckish after nap time, so that’s snack time. Soon they will wake up and the quietness will be no more,” she smiled.

“Soon they will wake up and the quietness will be no more.”

Sishuba, or teacher Caroline as she’s affectionately known by her class of three- to four-year-olds, is one of several stand-in mothers at UCT’s Educare Centre. And what a mighty task.

The centre, which has been described as a microcosm of UCT as it reflects the institution’s ethnic and cultural diversity, is a home-from-home for children whose parents are UCT staff and students. And for Sishuba, being a stand-in mother is more than a job, it’s a calling.

Natural choice

A career in early childhood development (ECD) was a natural choice, she explained. As the “big sister” in her family, she always looked after her younger siblings, as well as her older brother – a trend that has continued into adulthood.

In fact, even children from her neighbourhood in Queenstown in the Eastern Cape would join her and her siblings for a game of school-school in the afternoons.

“Nothing gave me more pleasure than looking after my siblings. It gave me so much joy to teach them things, to help them read and to watch them grow and develop,” she said.

“By the time the young ones started school, they could write their names already.”

After a few stops and starts along the way, which included some time in the hospitality industry and working as an au pair without a formal qualification, Sishuba completed a short course in ECD and has never looked back.

She joined UCT’s Educare Centre in 2009 on a rotating schedule, moving from class to class and helping out where she was most needed. In June she’ll celebrate 10 years as part of the UCT family, a journey and experience for which she’s “most grateful”.

Finding the balance

It’s not an easy task being responsible for someone else’s pride and joy. But Sishuba said she treats “them all like my own, so it’s actually very easy”.

She is firm and stern when she needs to be – the naughty corner is always waiting. But she also applies love and compassion towards each little boy and girl not only in her class, but throughout the school.

The trick to ticking that box is finding the right balance and even that, she added, comes naturally.

“I can’t explain it. It’s like being a mom. You just know how to give the right amount of both. You can’t be too soft, but you also can’t be too strict.”

“I can’t explain it. It’s like being a mom. You just know how to give the right amount of both. You can’t be too soft, but you also can’t be too strict.”

Knowing that children model behaviour and copy what they see drives Sishuba and her colleagues to be on their best behaviour every day. In addition, she said, they also need to mind their words and watch what they say when the children are around.

“They watch everything and listen to everything, even when you think they’re not. So, we have to bite our tongues and always lead by example.”

The winning formula

Is there a winning formula for working with little children every day?

“Truth be told,” Sishuba said smiling, “there really is none.

“How I treat my children at school is exactly the way I treat my own children and grandchildren at home. I love them all the same. Favouritism is the worst thing you can do with children. It’s a big no-no.”

There is perhaps just one thing that makes the job a bit easier – the ability to adapt well to high noise levels because earplugs are not an option.

“It’s my daily bread. It comes with being a day mother to lots of children. The noise shows they’re happy and at home. It shows that what we’re doing is working and [it] doesn’t bother me in the slightest,” Sishuba said.