Making Matric Matter December 26, 2009

Sponsor a Preschool Child December 26, 2008

Help us close the gap early

R500 per child for a year’s learning:

Our Target:

100 impoverished preschool kids to receive:

Basic Computer Training

Elementary Numeracy

Elementary Literacy

You can sponsor a child: R500 for the year. Every child will receive a weekly computer session with a trained faciliator and practice age-appropriate literacy and numeracy excercises.

PLEASE NOTE: Our preschools programme is being re-developed.

(last updated: 15/03/10).

Siyabonga LGIT! December 2, 2008

A BIG thank you to LGIT Smart Solutions who recently took time out from their busy work schedules to help with some much needed building renovation. Amazing what a fresh coat of paint and some TLC can do!

The LGIT team that made this possible.

We look forward now to phase 2 which is to equip this room with computers and expand Siyakhula’s educational offering to the Ivory Park community. LGIT have not only invested time and effort in Siyakhula this year but have also bought into the vision of quality education for all – we look forward with much excitment to further interaction in the year to come.

LGIT Smart Solutions is a Information Technology training provider based in Woodmead, Johannesburg and a Gold Certified Microsoft Partner. Visit LGIT’s website here.

Gauteng Offline November 15, 2008

Gautengonline is an ambitious and sorely needed programme run by the Gauteng Department of Education to equip every school in the province with a 25-station computer lab. The problem is that simply installing computers and IT-infrastructure does not automatically translate into effective and meaningful lessons for school learners.

Notwithstanding the paralysing bureaucracy that accompanies this project there is also inadequate teacher training, support and assistance with incorporating this technology into the teaching curriculum – expecially given that most teachers in our poorer schools are themselves computer illiterate. All we’re left with is an expensive outlay for non-existant outcomes and continued complaints about being under-resourced.

This computer lab in the photo above has been installed for over a year and there is yet to be a lesson conducted for learners. Similarly, on a visit to a nearby primary school, the computer lab was opened for the first time that week to show me around.

Should we be marching or something?

Education or Death September 18, 2008

Nelson Mandela said: “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world”.

The reality, however, is that in our poorer schools we are losing another generation. The post-schooling opportunities available to the majority of learners from Ebony and Ivory Park are extremely limited due to the poor performance of the schools in this area and a lack of resources, support and external assistance. This week Siyakhula delivered Micro-Science kits to two nearby high schools in an effort to help address the lack of science laboratory equipment. 6 Science teachers were trained by Radmaste (WITS) and provided with the tools for practical hands-on experimentation – the challenge is again highlighted by the fact that these 6 teachers are responsible for the science education of over 4000 learners. You do the Math.

For most of the matriculants from these schools, the post-schooling options available are almost entirely low-skills dependent. Tertiary education is extremely rare and, at best, only 5% of learners will graduate with university exemption. The overwhelming majority will not achieve the required academic standard necessary for further education and skills development and their future life and career options remain severely restricted as a result. During the dark days of Apartheid a rallying cry for the oppressed was “Freedom or Death” – freedom at the time was simply non-negotiable and there was no doubt as to its importance. Should the new rallying cry for us today be something like “Education or Death”? Surely quality education is simply non-negotiable and what can be more important? Is it not increasingly urgent that we put behind us the days of ‘liberation before education’? How do we more effectively unlock the empowering and transforming potential of ‘liberation through education’?

Siyakhula’s schools enrichment programme aims to provide youth from underperforming schools with the necessary skills and information – both academic and personal – to access further educational and/or employment opportunities and thereby transform their personal and social circumstances. Quite literally we are trying the change the world.

For a very accurate and well-written description of the state of our township and rural schools, click here. (Note the suggestions in the last paragraph)

A Saturday Morning to Change the World August 26, 2008

Last week Siyakhula hosted a workshop facilitated by the Resolve Group who led a group of Grade 12 learners (selected from those who attend our Supplementary Tutoring Programme) through ‘An Introduction to the Workplace’ workshop. Topics included: workplace etiquette; job-seeking suggestions; c.v. tips; telephone skills; interview techniques; and basic business manners and expectations. The sessions were lively, dynamic, energetic and characterised by the enthusiastic and active engagement of the learners. It was great to allow oneself to be moved by the infectious desire of young people to learn and to view the world and the future as one brimming with possibility.

Its difficult however not to feel burdened by the reality that the majority of these kids will be desperately underprepared and under-educated when they leave school. In fact, it is difficult not to feel overwhelmed by the sheer scale of the schooling crisis – and it is a crisis! How can we make real the conviction that “how things are is not how things have to be”? Could we do worse than tapping into the idealism of these young people and allow a forward-looking worldview to shape our response?

For me, our response begins on a Saturday morning. Why don’t you join us between 10:00 and 11:30 at siyakhula and meet the kids? Maths and Science skills would be particularly beneficial but we are not Maths and Science machines and there are many other ways to connect with each other in growing our world and helping mend this universe.

Shifting Paradigms August 22, 2008

Part of the South Africa’s massive schooling problem has do with some of the teachers themselves – many feel overburdened, demoralised, disinterested and apathetic. Siyakhula and the Franklin Covey Foundation hosted a workshop for teachers from a nearby high school on ‘Individual and Team Greatness’ in the schooling context (a derivative of Steven Covey’s 7Habits). One of the challenges put to the educators was to consider a shift in mindset – specifically focussing on the particular sphere of influence most directly under one’s control – simple things really like ensuring your classes begin on time, that all lessons are well prepared and that classroom remain tidy. Our current grade 12s testify that this is often not the case.

The scale of the challenge however is reflected in the reality that a third of the staff failed to pitch – of those who did, a quarter did not stay till the end and at least half of those who remained have resignation and defeat etched on their faces. It was a depressing experience that reaffirmed the desperate need for teachers to engage deeply with these issues and we look forward to further Franklin Covey assistance in this regard. It seems wise to focus our resources on those teachers that want to be the catalysts of change – and there are many who do, they are afterall at the very coalface of real transformation in this country.

Do we need to shift any paradigms of our own? And could it be possible that our potential sphere of influence is greater than we imagine? How do we move away from the paralysis that seems to bedevil us whenever we confront the giants plaguing this land? If we focus on the things we can control, could this be how we change our world?

Crisis – What Crisis? May 27, 2008

As a country we’ve been wondering what exactly it means to describe something as a “crisis”. This past week myself and Prof Bhekizizwe Peterson entered into conversation with 2 High Schools in Ivory Park. I’ll post the outcome soon - in sum, it won’t make for comfortable reading. If G.K. Chesterton is right in maintaining that, “Education is simply the soul of a society as it passes from one generation to another”, then our collective soul is in desperate need of substance and sustenance. The reality is that we are the people with the capacity to provide this substance and sustenance. Whether we regard the situation in Ivory Park (and similar settings) as a ‘crisis’ or ‘challenge’ is largely irrelevant, what matters is how we respond.

In this regard, Ikamva Youth is a partner organisation of Siyakhula operating in Khayelitsha, Western Cape. Last year, their tutoring and learner support programme enabled 76% of those who attended weekly classes to access post-school study and learnership opportunities. Is this not something Siyakhula should be actively trying to replicate? What is our response?

Midrand’s Digital Divide April 22, 2008

The fact that you are reading this blog posting means that YOU are on the resourced side of the ‘digital divide’. The digital divide is that imaginary divide (or donga in South African speak) that separates those who have proper access to modern technologies and those who don’t. In Midrand, the N1 almost serves as a physical expression of the gap between the the two. Can you imagine life without a computer? Can you imagine life without the internet? Or life without email? For many of us, these technologies are so ingrained in our everyday way of doing things that we’ve taken them for granted.

Not so for the vast majority of Ivory Park. Even where there are schools with computers and internet, this does not immediately translate into IT-equipped individuals. In many schools, computer labs are barely used or remain locked because the teachers are overburdened or require more training. The really tragic aspect to this is that the proper and sustained use of IT-technology has the potential to serve as a real development-enabler and a means by which to tackle a whole variety of developmental needs. Just think about the need for clear and accurate information with regards to health, social benefits, quality curriculum delivery, up-to-date news and communication methods… the list is long.

Since February this year, Siyakhula have enabled 70 students to become computer literate (most of these students had no previous computer knowledge whatsoever). This is, of course, the tip of the ice-berg but it is a start. Would you be interested in joining our team of volunteer trainers? Classes run on Saturday mornings and require a commitment of 6-8 weeks. Email me if you are interested.

Alternatively, would you be willing to inform your company about us? To put it simply, the more computers we have the more students we can teach. We’re looking for fast Pentium IVs (i.e. your old stock)

If you missed the Siyakhula Schools Enrichment Programme insert, click here and please pass on to anyone who might be interested.

Open Day – All Welcome March 1, 2008

Siyakhula operates in Ebony and Ivory Park and is about empowering under-resourced and underserved communities through educational initiatives. The core focus until now has been the development of computer literacy skills. Siyakhula is holding an OPEN DAY and GRADUATION on Saturday 29th March, 11h00 – 15h00. If you are interested in what Siyakhula has to offer, then please drop by for a first hand experience and a short tour.

For more information, call Andrew on 082 903 5979. For directions and a map to Siyakhula email: andrew@wearegrowing.org

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