The Sappi KwaDukuza Resource Centre is a lifeline of hope to the surrounding community.
When Busi Nkuna began teaching at Qoqulwazi Secondary School at Driefontein on KwaZulu-Natal’s North Coast in September 1999 she inherited four grade 12 biology learners and a dismal pass rate of 50%.
She was one of the “excess” educators identified by KwaZulu-Natal’s Department of Education who were moved from reasonably resourced schools to under-resourced schools in an attempt to adjust learner-to-educator ratios in the province.
Things were a far cry from her former school in Groutville where, apart from bigger classes, items essential to teaching basic biology and physics ? although old ? were available.
At Qoqulwazi she had to make do with six microscopes ? all broken ? for her class of 60 grade 11 biology learners. For her 100 grade 10 learners she was given one biology textbook.
When teaching physics and chemistry, facilities were even worse. The school does not have any of the standard Bunsen burners required ? instead she uses an ordinary “demonstration” paraffin burner to heat test tubes during experiments.
Built by the community, the school has no electricity although ironically there are fluorescent lights in the ceiling. There is a chronic shortage of desks and books, and there are none of the “extras” taken for granted at other schools in the province.
And yet, as incredible as it may appear, teaching goes on. In the two years since her arrival the bio-logy grade 12 pass rate has doubled from 50% in 1999 to 100% last year and the number of grade 12 learners who choose biology has climbed from four to 12.
Nkuna attributes this to the unassuming role played by the Sappi KwaDukuza Resource Centre. It is like a ray of hope for her and the 70Â 000 learners it services.
“If this place had to close down it would be bad, like everyone was dead,” says Nkuna.
Established in June 2000, the centre was equipped by the global pulp and paper company, Sappi, at a cost of R1,5-million and donations in kind from local and national companies to the tune of R500 000.
Sappi’s key educational focus area is the advancement of science and technology through its corporate social investment (CSI) programme.
The company spends 55% ? the largest portion of its total CSI budget ? on education but also targets areas like job creation, the environment, safety and security, and social welfare and health.
“The biggest pitfall today is trying to be everything to everybody. At Sappi we focus our investment on communities from a holistic point of view. The key to building stable communities must be one of equitable access to everyone in the community,” said Sappi’s public affairs manager responsible for managing the national corporate social investment programme, Lourens Joubert.
Central to the establishment of the Sappi KwaDukuza Resource Centre is the desire to find a way to cross “the digital divide”. Here learners and educators are exposed to a computer village and subjects like maths, science and technology are actively promoted.
“Quite literally walking through the Sappi KwaDukuza Resource Centre doors is like walking from the 1950s and jumping straight into the 21st century,” said administration and fundraising manager Sheena Lutge.
She said learners, who become members for three months at a nominal R10 fee, are given access to the Internet, e-mail and exposure to vital business software packages.
“The centre has high-volume hotocopy, lamination, book binding and faxing facilities. This basic faci-lity has enabled educators from outlying areas ? some for the first time ? to provide learners with lesson materials and exam papers. Ultimately this goes a long way toward improving educational standards and the effectiveness of teaching in the area,” she said.
Said Nkuna: “I have one Grade 10 biology book. Every time I taught in the past, I used to have to write out sections on the blackboard so the learners could copy them down. Imagine how long it takes.
“At least now I can photocopy the sections for the learners, if I need to.”
In addition to these services the centre provides a huge selection of biology charts, models and chemistry equipment that go a long way towards making teaching and learning more exciting.
Educational videos are there to view, a well-stocked resource library with publications and books of all kinds is there to be used and a seminar room offers community members a place to hold meetings and lessons.
“I am able to borrow charts and models from the centre and take them to class. I can source chemicals and anything else I need. The staff are helpful and, unlike other places, I think they appreciate what we do,” says Nkuna
But going “this extra mile” does come with a price. Each time she travels to the centre by taxi it costs R24 a return trip, which Nkuna pays out of her own pocket. She often pays for learners to visit the centre simply to show them what it has to offer.
“Sometimes I take out as much as three or four maths videos or cassettes for English and invite all the pupils to my parents’ home and play them ? for the whole day,” she says.
“Showing them the cassettes makes everything come alive. It instils confidence in the children. I have seen it work. My students have a better understanding and listen more,” she says.
Nkuna is just one of the success stories that are associated with the work done at the Sappi KwaDukuza Resource Centre.
Up the road from her, at Shekembula Secondary School, teacher Mduduzi Manganyela Dorringkop has plugged a long extension cord into a neighbour’s socket and is able to switch on the overhead projector in his class.
The projector is on loan from the centre. Dorringkop transported it home in a taxi and then carried it up the hill to his school.
“It gives us hope that no matter how poor we are everything is not hopeless. Somehow we have to make a difference,” he said.