Ask Karen Riste

Karen Riste has received an award at the Learning and Work Institute’s Inspire! Tutor Awards, in the Welsh for Adults category.

Karen started learning Welsh as an adult, so she could speak Welsh with her children.  She has been a tutor with Learn Welsh Gwent, run by Coleg Gwent on behalf of the National Centre for Learning Welsh, since 1994.

Here, we chat to Karen about the award, and her language journey…

You’ve won an Inspire! Tutor Award – how do you feel?

I feel so proud.  I love my job, and it’s lovely to know other tutors think so highly of me.

What inspired you to learn Welsh?

When I was expecting my son, I decided to learn a bit of Welsh to speak with him.  I wanted my son to hear Welsh both at school, and at home.  Once I started learning, I absolutely loved it!

Does anyone else in your family speak Welsh?

Yes – both my son and my daughter.  My daughter, Ceri, is Head of Maths at Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Bro Edern Welsh-medium comprehensive in Cardiff.  My son, Geraint, is helping his girlfriend, who is from England, to learn Welsh.

How and why did you make the leap from learning Welsh to becoming a tutor?

When my children were in nursery school, I ran an eight-week programme to help parents understand a little Welsh through reading and singing.  When the programme ended, the parents wanted to learn more.  So, after I passed my Advanced level exam, I decided to become a tutor.

Any advice for new tutors?

Go and observe other tutors’ classes, and don’t be afraid to ask other tutors for help.

What’s your favourite thing about being a tutor?

The learners – it’s wonderful to see them making progress, making new friends, getting jobs in Welsh, socialising in Welsh and living their lives through the language.

What’s your advice for people learning Welsh?

Keep going.  Communication is the most important thing.  Listen to Radio Cymru and podcasts, and watch S4C.  It doesn’t matter if you don’t understand everything – it’s an amazing feeling when you understand a sentence for the first time.

What difference has learning Welsh made to you?

Welsh has given me a new life.  I’ve made new friends, and the language has given me the best job in the world.

Image: Karen Riste with Helen Prosser, Director of Teaching and Learning at the National Centre for Learning Welsh.