Oom Tose’s teaching adds up
High praise for retired maths, science teacher
HE TAUGHT maths in his garage to children who would go on to become famous. Matose “Oom Tose” Mciteka, 66, who is retiring after teaching for more than 40 years, gave extra maths lessons to future doctors, engineers and pharmacists.
He even taught University of Fort Hare vice-chancellor Dr Mvuyo Tom, who has had an illustrious career.
However, teaching and learning never ends for Oom Tose.
He has put up his hand to help the recipients of 20 science and maths bursaries in Duncan Village and Mdantsane on offer from Buffalo City Metro.
“I will give these services for the rest of my life just to ensure our children become the Albert Einsteins and Alexander Bells of tomorrow.
He said it was critical to teach pupils in their mother tongue, “so our children get to understand that maths and science are very easy. Maths and science are in your everyday life and once you get the basics, the sky is the limit.”
Former pupils have praised him for going the extra mile.
Some even slept over at his Mlungisi township home in Komani.
Dr Tom, a qualified medical doctor, described Mciteka as “a brilliant physicist who had an amazing ability to recognise talent”.
“He would literally know how to encourage a student and to make us believe that we were able to excel in the science field,” he said.
Komani-born Mciteka started out as a teacher but went into commercial chemistry when he became a lab technician at Lennon Laboratories in Port Elizabeth.
In 1976, the call to go back to teaching overwhelmed him and he returned to Ndlovukazi High School in Komani where he worked his way up to finally retire as the principal.
Woolworths head of transformation, Zinzisa Magolodela, a product of Mciteka’s teaching, was crowned this year’s Black Management Forum national manager of the year.
Magolodela called Mchiteka a “unique teacher who believed in his students more than they believed in themselves”.
Mciteka’s children followed in his footsteps. His eldest son, Lungelo, has a doctorate in organic chemistry, and is a senior lecturer at Cape Peninsula University of Technology.
His eldest daughter, Dr Linda Mciteka-Nonjoloo, is an oncologist, while his two other daughters – Vuyo Mciteka Tunyiswa and Nosipiwo Mciteka – both have honours degrees in science, with Nosipiwo specialising in actuarial science.