English and History teacher,  Sir Cecil Simon is a Special Person

Oct 30, 2022 News

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Delivering unparalleled dedication to his students for over 40 years…

By Rehanna Ramsay

Kaieteur News – In his youth, Cecil Simon often dreamed of becoming a Reporter. He had long admired the BBC method of reporting and wanted to use his language in that way but his interest slowly shifted and he set his heart on becoming a teacher because of the academic longevity that the career offered him. Today, Mr. Simon has spent over 40 years as a teacher.

‘Sir Simon’ as he is called by most of his students is a Cyril Potter College of Education (CPCE) trained Teacher and University of Guyana (UG) Graduate.

At UG, he earned his Bachelor’s Degree, majored in History, and minored in the English Language.   He also holds a post-graduate Diploma in Education where he specialized in Social Studies in addition to a Master’s in History.

And though, he has invested more than four decades of his life in the education sector, Sir Simon is not quite finished with the profession. He is still employed as a part-time teacher at Morgan Learning Centre (MLC) a private school in addition to being a part-time lecturer at the Guyana School of Agriculture (GSA).  He teaches English Language and Caribbean History at the institutions.

Mr. Simon told this magazine that he continues to tutor students in the subject area mostly because of his love for the English language.

“I love the English language and it is a subject area that is necessitated by my students many of them gravitated to the English Language … It is my way of pouring back into my students the knowledge I received over the years,” the teacher and father of five said.

He spoke of the satisfaction that he received from teaching. Mr. Simon said that what keeps him motivated is not so much the money but seeing how I’ve been able to influence young minds academically.

“The beauty about it is interacting with people from different social and ethnic backgrounds, encouraging them in their goals and aspirations and experience. Satisfaction in the job comes with knowing you worked and the students are successful whether big or small.”

Mr. Simon is a product of Buxton, a village on the East Coast of Demerara that produced several distinguished Guyanese men and women of African descent.  Ascribing to the African Proverb “It takes a village to raise a child,” the Teacher shared that many of them taught him and played a role in helping him to become the man, he is today.

VILLAGE ELDERS

Mr. Cecil Simon was born to Eunice Simon and Edgar Morgan and grew up in Buxton. He came from a family of 11 which included eight boys and three girls.  During his formative years, the young Simon attended Buxton Secondary (Buxton Congregational) and Bladen Hall Multilateral.

He explained that he came from a working-class family that valued education.  Sir Simon said that even though his parents were alive, he lived with his grandmother, Edith Carter.

He told the Waterfalls “Growing up in Buxton, a place you can say you have everything, the good the bad, and indifferent, but it’s a microcosm of a family. It’s a place where people look out for each other. It’s a place where the fact that you grew up poor you received education free for the most part in the village. There was Eusi Kwayana, John and Gary Cromwell, Peter Payne, Basil ‘Bone Head’ Steel, and Kwame Apata who gave lessons once you were interested; there were bottom house classes.”

According to Simon, these elders of the village excelled academically and gave education back to youths in the community.

He said “Phynella Abrams taught him the English Language also my Grandfather, George Simon taught me English Language and Math. They contributed to my schooling–in and out of school.”

The Teacher continued, “We didn’t have much but I was satisfied with what we had. We were taught that learning was better than silver and gold; that the focus wasn’t on riches. I had a normal childhood and took part in sports, volleyball, cricket, and so forth, I didn’t have much coaching but once there was a group of young people with athletic ability we encouraged each other to do our training.”

He revealed too that back then, his interest was to become a reporter.

“I admired the BBC method of reporting and wanted to use my language in that way but after a while, my interest changed,d and I realized that being, in teaching would allow me to progress education-wise,” he explained.

EXPERIENCED TEACHER

The experienced Teacher taught at the Buxton Congregational School for 11 years, and at Annandale Secondary for five years. He taught evening classes in Enmore, Vryheid Lust, and Buxton.

The Teacher was also a part of the Catholic Board of Education in the Bahamas. Mr. Simon taught in the Bahamas for 20 years.

When he returned to Guyana in 2020, he became a part-time teacher at MLC where he had been teaching part-time for a number of years.

Speaking about his experience teaching in the Bahamas, Sir Simon said while there is a slight difference in the method of teaching the attitude towards education, how students approach it is different.

“In the Bahamas, the average Bahamian is a bit more material centered. You find the Haitians a bit more focused on grabbing the education because they know their livelihood depends on it. In Guyana I’ve noticed students are becoming more Americanised in their outlook of life itself,” he said adding that living and working in the Bahamas broadened his perspective in life.

The Teacher explained that, “The Bahamas is a beautiful tourism destination, so many people go there to have fun, and it is a vibrant mix of culture and people so when we moved there, it was for a specific thing, yet we stayed for 20 years.”

In the Bahamas, Mr. Simon saw 100% passes in Geography, History, and Social Studies. Both he and his late wife Olive, who was also a teacher, received awards from the Catholic Board of Education for their years of service in the Bahamas

The Simons’ stay in the Bahamas came to an abrupt end when Hurricane Doreen ripped through the island destroying lives and properties.

I didn’t see ourselves staying for 20 years we kept coming to Guyana and going back.  When the Hurricane happened, we lost almost everything and decided to return home. It was my wife, I, and my daughter, Ocia who is the last of our five children.

Then shortly after, the family returned to Guyana, and tragedy struck. Mrs. Simon fell sick with a terminal illness and just five months after the doctor made the diagnosis, the beloved matriarch of the Simon family died.

OTHER PASSIONS

Aside from teaching, Mr. Simon said that he is very much involved in his family life. His wife, Olive Simon (deceased) children Seon , Simon, Oliceia Tinnie, and Abidemi Simon are his most valued earthly treasures.

“My wife after we returned from the Bahamas passed. We were married for over 20 years, and my wife and I shared the same profession. Along the way, most of our children didn’t become teachers. We have one Doctor, a Psychiatrist, and a journalist. The only teacher is my wife’s older daughter Nicole Hallway.”

In the Bahamas, Mr. Simon was a part of the Bahamanian Anchor Club, the youth arm of Pilot club, a non-profit that does community work with a specific focus on people with brain disorders.

The group would provide assistance for persons to get treatment from medical charities like the St Jude Hospital in the United States.

In Guyana, he is President of the Buxton /Friendship Museum and Cultural Centre, Guyana historical society, and the education committee.

Apart from inspiring people academically, Mr. Simon said that seeing people, of which he has been a part of their educational training, seeing them bloom from around the world, and looking at his children succeed in their individual fields is rewarding.  His only heartbreak is that his wife is not here to witness it, with him.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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