Mmipe Mokgehle

Toronto Primary School
Limpopo

Mmipe Mokgehle, 56, was announced the winner of the coveted 2011 Lifetime Achievement Award at the annual National Teaching Awards (NTAs), taking home prizes that included a brand new Chevrolet Spark. The award is conferred on a teacher who has contributed more than 30 years of unbroken service to the teaching profession.

The complete package of his prizes included a brand new car sponsored by General Motors, R25 000 from Vodacom, R8 000 from Maskew Miller, a bursary worth R20 000 from the Education Training and Development Practices Seta and a weekend treat at the Birchwood hotel and conference facility in Ekurhuleni.

“Naturally I am excited, very overwhelmed indeed,” says Mokgehle. He says it was not the first time he had entered the awards; he had entered in 2008 and 2010 too, but “in both those years, I was a runner-up and this was my third attempt, so in a sense you could say I’m third time lucky”.

Mokgehle says God helps those who work hard and so does luck. “This [award] did not come out of nothing; I feel it is a product of commitment and hard work,” he said. After more than 32 years as a teacher, you could easily dismiss Mokgehle as one of the traditionalists of the profession. In fact, he is one of the few his age who has embraced technology in the classroom and harnesses it to deliver exciting lessons of a high standard.

Embracing technology
Mokgehle, in his seventh year at Toronto Primary in Mankweng, Limpopo, teaches technology and computer systems to grade sevens. He says technology is the best thing to have happened to teaching. It has revolutionised the profession and brought energy and innovation. As a result, learners do not get bored and are constantly occupied.

He says his first encounter with a computer dates back to 2000, when one of the computer companies visited his school to train teachers on how to use IT as an innovative teaching tool. “I never looked back. I continued to learn more and even taught my peers, which deepened my IT knowledge and skills,” Mokgehle says. He uses research-based teaching methods to expose learners to a wide range of technological skills.

His particular area of focus is indigenous knowledge systems in biodiversity conservation, where his learners conduct research on indigenous herbs and trees in the school garden.

Forming a computer literacy outreach
Mokgehle makes sure other schools in his area also benefit from his IT skills. In 2004 he formed a computer literacy outreach programme through which 200 teachers from 47 nearby schools received training.

A total of 987 computers were distributed to the schools, with 25 000 learners accessing them. “We also provided training to learners who passed grade 12 but did not have money to go to tertiary institutions, including local unemployed youths.

We worked closely with the University of Limpopo to assess and accredit the training,” says Mokgehle. He says majority of temporary teachers who had been laid off because their skills did not meet the requirements of the National Curriculum Statement were reinstated after they were trained in IT skills,” he said.

Mokgehle has received several awards in recognition for his dedication to teaching, including Best Presentation of Maths and Afrikaans, ISPA ICT Champion, Super Teacher of the Year, Microsoft Peer Review and ICT Top Teacher in Africa. He says he chose teaching because it is the best instrument to “mould and direct the youth into a lifelong path of learning”.

“I wanted to help unleash the potential in children, especially those from poor backgrounds, to use education as a way of breaking out of the cycle of poverty and hopelessness. I want every child who passes through my hands to become part of the knowledge community and, more importantly, to be a responsible citizen.”