Where and when did you matriculate? Florida Park High School in 1992. What was your favourite subject and why? Mathematics — it simply made sense. Did you have a favourite teacher at school? My English teacher, Mr Cole, brought the language to life and made it interesting. What sort of a boy was Fezile at […]
In his magnificent (and largely uncelebrated) jazz suite, <i>A Drum is a Woman</i>, Duke Ellington lets go with both barrels by telling us that "rhythm came to America from Africa". It is a bold and uncompromising statement…
The new school year is underway and teachers and learners in Grade 10 are struggling to accommodate one other. Many Grade 10 teachers are being exposed to OBE for the first time while their learners have three years’ of experience of OBE under their belts. In addition, Grade 10 learners have knowledge gaps in subjects […]
The revised National Curriculum Statement (NCS) will be implemented in the whole of the Intermediate Phase in 2005. The national Department of Education is in the process of sending copies of the NCS to schools. So far, schools should have received the Overview to the NCS in all 11 official languages, the Learning Area Statements […]
My last few columns for this year are aimed at heads of departments (HODs) and particularly school principals who are often left out of the curriculum training loop. What should you be telling your teachers about the planned changes to the curriculum? The revised National Curriculum Statement (NCS) for General Education and Training (GET – […]
In 2000, the Review of C2005 recommended that in-service training of teachers for the new curriculum should be conducted by higher education institutions. As a result, in 2001, the Gauteng Department of Education (GDE) formed a strategic partnership with eight higher educations institutions in the province to train Grade 5, 6 and 9 teachers due […]
The first round of training for C2005 undertaken by provincial departments was fraught with many problems. The Review of C2005 (which took place in 2000) found that the training models, the time spent on training and the quality of the training left much to be desired. The cascade model of training proved to be inadequate. […]
The African National Congress has proclaimed 2002 the Year of the Volunteer. In its statement issued on January 8 this year, marking the 90th anniversary of the organisation, the concept of letsema, ilima was explained in this way: ‘Historically, this spirit was fundamental to the strengthening of the cohesion of our societies. It encouraged cooperative […]
In April 1993 I got a temporary teaching post at one of the schools in a rural area called Stranger’s Rest. I had to travel 88 kilometres to work and back. There was a transport problem at the time and as I was still new I had to borrow money for travelling, which was sometimes […]
In the 1980s I was teaching at the Kwa-Sibonda CP school in Empangeni. The school is situated in a rural area. One day, my colleague, Miss Muthwa, who teaches Grade 1, and I, who taught Grade 2, were in the hall with our classes, practising Song of the Mountain, which we had to sing at […]