Joel talks about peer support & shame (2:46)

A couple of fellow apprentices who are in that class with me and – and they – they’re female, and they’ve found it hard to approach the lecturer, and they found it hard to approach anyone else except me, because from the day we met I sort of acted like their brother or, you know, whatever, just being a clown and, you know, but being part of – of their life sort of thing and integrating myself with them.  And they approached me, “Oh, how do I get a tutor?”  So I – I’m helping them in – in that sense, and I’ve also let them know, and now they know, that once they made a phone call like, “Oh, they’re all there to help”.  And they’re doing heaps well now, like they – and they – they’re coming to class more because they skipped a few classes because they’re a bit unsure of whether they were doing studies right and couldn’t ask the lecturer, they were a bit shy and shame job.  And the shame and shyness type of things is a – is a big one, and it’s hard to get over that.  The only way I’ve learnt to is by being – the personality I have is – is up front and I’ll, you know, if I see you being shy in a corner I’ll come and confront you and – and tell you my name and who I am and what I do, and just let me know your name.  And generally that breaks the ice.  And I think that’s where the lecturer has failed with these girls, is she hasn’t made her – she is approachable from my point of view, but from those girls’ point of view they haven’t met her in a – in a formal sense of meeting, and have a – haven’t had that.  You know, so for them to come and ask this person they don’t know .

So they haven’t built a relationship?

A relationship, yeah, yeah.  And I think that’s the only way to get over that shame job shy stuff is to build a rapport, a relationship, is from day one don’t have students come into class and it’s not until six weeks later that you finally go over and say, “Karen is it?  Karen?  Yeah, yeah, Karen”.  Like it’s six – already – I’ve been coming to your class for six weeks and now you just know my name?  Like that’s how they – that’s how we feel.  It’s like, yeah, “You don’t know me, I don’t know you, so why would I ask you anything?”  And it’s hard.  So – but, that being said, that’s – that’s their experience, and this is what I’ve witnessed.  I’m lucky to have the personality that I have and just do what I do.  But the experience here has been great.