Find your Afrikaans tutors near me in Brits

Afrikaans Lessons in Brits

Brits, in South Africa’s North West Province, is a large town which is situated in a very (agriculturally) important area. Water for the production citrus fruit, vegetables, maize, sunflowers, fruit and flowers is provided by the Hartebeespoort Dam via a system of canals. Several heavy industries are also located here, as well as a vanadium mine and platinum mines. Brits, along with Rustenburg, produces more platinum than any other single region in the world. So, you find yourself in a town that was named after the owner of the farm Roode Kopjes (Red Hills), Johannes Nicolaas Brits.

Advantages of Learning Afrikaans

Although Setswana is spoken by a large portion of the town’s population, Afrikaans is still a very important language, particularly as relates to business affairs. To be able to converse fluently in Afrikaans is, thus, a great skill, given that many individuals do not speak this, the second most spoken language in Brits and surrounds. As an Afrikaans speaker, you would be in a good position when applying for a job. Not only would you have an advantage over a non-speaker, but you would be in a position to uplift non-speakers within the company. Outside of those confines, you could tutor speakers of other languages in basic Afrikaans and be party to the upliftment of the community in a major way. Your efforts could also help to ease tensions, if there were any, between different groups in the town. It has been proven in the past that where people do not speak the same language there is often misunderstanding and distrust. Knowledge of the other language can serve to smooth over misconceptions and miscommunication caused by the lack of understanding of the other party’s language. A wonderful skill to have in uncertain times! Negotiators, interpreters and translators are in high demand in a country like South Africa.

What is Your Motivation?

Why you study Afrikaans is an important determining factor, in terms of what path you follow with your studies. Do you simply want to converse in Afrikaans and understand day-to-day conversations? Or, is your motivation wanting to be considered for promotion at work. You may also currently be in a job that requires you to read and interpret Afrikaans mail and be able to respond to it appropriately. You may even be a young person with a passion for writing and you would like to hone your craft to a higher level.

There may, of course be other reasons, but if one of the above are yours, then you need to choose the apposite path to follow.

Where Do I Go?

If your occupation requires you to understand, speak and write Afrikaans at an advanced level, it would serve you well to enrol for a course at a private college, the University of South Africa (UNISA), the North-West University (NWU) or to engage the services of a private, native Afrikaans speaking tutor. Enrol for a teaching degree, with Afrikaans as one of your subjects, at UNISA or at another college. Here, your knowledge of the language and skills to teach it will be developed. The NWU Chancellor’s Trust also offers short courses for young writers, via the School of Creative Writing, at a number of venues throughout South Africa. There are also several courses that you could follow at various institutions which offer Business Studies. People who can compose solid, business letters, business plans and proposals in Afrikaans are in high demand. Again, many people fairly so poorly at these components that you would have a ready market if you were to consider tutoring young people.

Speaking of Tutoring

Various companies and individuals offer tutoring services. If you enjoy group sessions, interaction with classmates and want to improve your Afrikaans, then Afrikaans extra classes are the thing for you! Your classmates may spur you on to do better and help you feel comfortable about your level of proficiency. Learners, in such classes, often band together to help one another after hours, at their residences or over the phone (call or video-chat). This could even lead to an expansion of your circle of friends.

You simply need to type Afrikaans tutors near me if you want to identify someone in your locality. Hooking up with a dedicated tutor, is a sure-fire way to accelerate your learning of a language like Afrikaans. An experienced tutor will initially assess the level you are at, in terms of your ability to understand, read, speak and write the language. She or he will then design a programme that addresses your needs and ensure that it systematically builds up and develops your knowledge of the language and your ability to use it in everyday or professional contexts. Most of these tutors are native speakers of Afrikaans and, so, understand the nuances inherent in the language, as well as the pitfalls that often trip people up.

Superprof is an agency that puts students in touch with private, professional tutors. These individuals are either teachers or currently students who have a passion for Afrikaans and for imparting their knowledge and love of the language. They will interact with you in the safety and comfort of your own home, if that is what you prefer. Alternately, you can video-chat with your tutor on one of the many platforms on the Internet (Google meets, Zoom chat, Skype, etc.). This enables you to set up you lessons at a time that would suit you and you wouldn’t have to leave home to attend them. These tutors are made available to you in an easy to compare format and most tutors offer the first encounter free of charge. This gives you the chance to get a ‘feel’ for this strange person and for you to assess whether you would like to work with him/ her or not. Generally, the rates of these tutors are very affordable. At an average of R145 per hour, you won’t be breaking the bank when you retain the services of one of these passionate professionals. Pak die bul by die horings, man. Doen dit!