The future of history teaching came under sharp focus at the conference of the South African Society for History Teaching in Johannesburg
One good turn deserves another! The saying proved true for Clareville Primary School in Durban, which has opened its doors to children of refugees.
Last month the school received R90 000 from the United Nations in recognition of its work. Nene Annan, the wife of UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, visited the school during the World Conference Against Racism and praised their efforts.
Clareville currently has about 55 refugee pupils from several African countries, including Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Malawi and Zambia.
While most of these children live in town, due to their refugee status, they have had problems getting into other schools. But at Clareville they have been welcomed and no distinction is made between local and refugee learners.
UN High Commissioner for Refugees Bemma Donkoh said she was pleased at the way the refugee children had been integrated into the school. “Children are children, no matter where they come from, and they all deserve the basic human right of education.”
Clareville has only nine classrooms but almost 400 pupils.
The money will be used to help the school with renovations, with another block of toilets being added for the children as well as an administration block.
Principal Sangith Bhairoparsad said the donation comes after a long and difficult battle to getting a sponsor to help bring the school up to standard. “I have approached almost every big company imaginable to give us a donation, so the money will indeed be a big help.”
Provincial MEC for Education Gabriel Ndabandaba thanked the UN for its generous donation and praised the school for its hard work and dedication.
– The Teacher/M&G Media, Johannesburg, December 2001.