Teacher’s Cape Argus addiction
FOR MORE than 57 years, an English language teacher has been using the Cape Argus as original resource material for teaching creative writing.
Alex Tabisher, 77, of Belhar, who still lectures part-time at the Mowbray campus of CPUT, said the Cape Argus has always been part of his life.
As a boy growing up in Alicedale, Athlone, he would wait with his friends at the corner shop for the delivery of the newspapers, he said. “It was quite an occasion. The rope would be cut around the bundles of newspapers, then they would be counted. We had to wait because the copies would be sold out immediately.”
Tabisher’s relationship with the Cape Argus began in earnest when as a Grade 11 pupil at Alexander Sinton High School, a much-admired teacher approved of his newspaper reading and urged parents to buy copies of the Cape Argus for their children, he said.
First, the newspaper impacted on Tabisher’s own literacy level, and then as an educator he realised its value. The cartoons, adverts and photographs all became grist for Tabisher’s teaching mill and became instrumental in developing youthful cognitive processes and in creative writing, he said.
Tabisher said he always considered the Cape Argus to be unbiased and not “political party specific”. “These editors, they have the finger on the pulse of what is relevant. Where in the world would you get a newspaper that says to a homeless man, ‘write your impressions’ and then publishes his story on the front page?
“For homeless people, the newspaper is a blanket or a mattress, something to start a fire with, to smoke, to roll his zol, but suddenly this humane paper is saying there are more people out there and they are vital. The newspaper sees them. Readers are noticing the changes in the newspaper and it is going in the right direction,” he said.
Reminiscing about the old days, Tabisher expressed great admiration for the writings of critic Owen Williams, and entertainment writer Theresa Smith also became a favourite. “Also the puzzles – I don’t know what I would do without the Friday Cape Argus with its bumper puzzle edition. It keeps me busy until Sunday. –