Education News

Three new educational programmes for SA crèches

 

The Unlimited Child has a pilot launch of three new education programmes that will ultimately be supplied free of charge to the crèches using The Unlimited Child model. The organisation reaches 762 disadvantaged crèches in six provinces: Gauteng, Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga and the Western Cape.

The Unlimited Child – Makabongwe Training (L - R): Nozipho Zondi (Siqalo Crèche), Sibahle Mbongwe (Emafezini Crèche), Jackie Kabindu (Makabongwe Pre-School), Zama Ngwane Majola (Khulanathi Crèche), Phakamile Chiliza (Emafezini Crèche) and Thulisile Makhathini (Monitor / Trainer for The Unlimited Child).

"Since we launched the programme in 2008, it has already helped provide quality early childhood education to 90,000 children, mostly aged between three and six years," says Steph Bester, chairman of The Unlimited Child. "Our programme is based on international research that shows play is the only effective way of teaching pre-school children.

"To meet the stipulations of the National Early Learning Development Standards (NELDS) curriculum, we have refined our play-centred learning programme so that it can respond to the needs of a broader age group. Our three new programmes for babies, toddlers and Grade R will complement our existing core programme for pre-Grade R children."

All four programmes - consisting of a practitioner's guide and an age-appropriate kit of educational toys and equipment - will be supplied to new crèches identified by the company according to the age mix of their children. Over time, these programmes will also be rolled out to the crèches already reached by The Unlimited Child.

"We train all caregivers how to use programmes, so the rollout to the crèches already following our model will involve re-training many of our caregivers to help them make the best use of these new programmes. The caregivers often do not have matric, let alone a teaching qualification. Therefore, we give hands-on, practical training showing them how to use the programmes. This is followed by regular monitoring of our crèches."

This week, a pilot group of nearly 40 caregivers from 10 different crèches are being trained to use the new programmes. During the four-day training session, caregivers will learn to use the easy-to-follow practitioners' guides that provide detailed outlines for activities and tasks for 200 days a year. They guide caregivers through the crèche day, from how and when to use the toys in the kits to when nappies for babies and toddlers need to be changed.

"Caregivers can use the equipment in different ways. Our training helps them understand that when the toys are used effectively, the children get maximum educational value."

The combination of the toy kits and the guides are the culmination of three years of planning and design by two of South Africa's leading early childhood educationalists, Freda Wilkens and Ian Corbishley. They have ensured that the new programmes are relevant and credible, in line with current curriculum requirements.

The Unlimited Child has partnered with educational toy supplier and publisher Vivlia to supply the material for the programmes. Bester says Vivlia have been totally committed to sourcing the best-quality toys for the kits. Many of the toys have been specially designed by Freda Wilkens and have been sourced and produced locally. This has meant that South Africa's rich heritage can be reflected as much as possible.

"We want the children reached by the programme to be proud of their South African roots. Therefore, when we include animals, they are rhinos and elephants; our dolls reflect who we are as South Africans in our rainbow nation. In addition, all our books and picture cards feature real South African characters. An example of this is that instead of Old MacDonald, we have Farmer Kunene! And our books and picture cards are available in three languages - English, isiZulu and isiXhosa - with a Sepedi version currently in the pipelines."

While The Unlimited Child is making a difference for thousands of children, the reality is that there are 7 million children in South Africa under the age of six, three-quarters of whom do not have any access to quality early childhood education.

"Many of these children are in crèches but, because of a lack of stimulation, they are already on the back foot when they start primary school. The company's goal is to reach at least 20 000 crèches across the country and we would really welcome like-minded companies and philanthropists as partners to help us achieve our goal and change the future of South Africa," concludes Bester.

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Skills Training News

Rural women complete Faranani Training Course

 

Following the completion of the Faranani Rural Women Training Course, women from previously disadvantaged communities were awarded their certificates at a graduation ceremony held in Pretoria recently.

PwC, in collaboration with the City of Tshwane, has provided business and entrepreneurial skills to these women under the Faranani Rural Women Training Initiative. The project aims to nurture women who have the drive and desire to become business-owners by providing them with the necessary know-how to get started.

Shirley Machaba, PwC South Africa board executive chairperson, Faranani Rural Women Training Initiative national director, and partner in charge of the PwC Menlyn office, says PwC is committed to empowering women and investing in their futures. "We want to celebrate the unwavering positives that women entrepreneurs bring to the South African economy as well as inspire and support future generations of young women entrepreneurs."

Shirley Machaba, PwC South Africa board executive chairperson

BSSA foundation

Annually, PwC builds the skills of more than a hundred underprivileged women from rural areas throughout the country through the Business Skills of South Africa (BSSA) foundation to provide business and entrepreneurial skills to previously disadvantaged communities in order to create jobs, promote sustainability and increase wealth.

The project provides the women with the knowledge to start-up and manage their own businesses. Over several days, the women are taught how to develop a business plan, which is supported by cash flow and profit forecasts, financial projections, marketing, financial management, pricing and costing, and business management.

"There is a high failure rate among black-owned start-up businesses, which is largely due to a lack of access to finance and other business support. The project is intended to address these and many other issues that small businesses have to contend with," adds Machaba.

Identifying gaps

"It is the firm's imperative to contribute to this initiative in order to address the gaps already identified in enterprise development while simultaneously contributing to the government's strategy of addressing unemployment, poverty and the skills shortage by creating jobs."

The project identifies women who are interested and literate, live in rural communities and have a disadvantaged background, have business interests and have already started a small business or are from woman-owned businesses.

PwC established the BSSA foundation together with the National Industrial Chamber in 1992 with the aim to provide business and entrepreneurial skills. Annually, PwC contributes over R2m towards this foundation. This, however, excludes an average of over R750,000 that is spent per year on the Faranani Rural Women Training Initiative. To date over 2,000 rural women have been trained through this initiative.

Primary & Secondary Education News

Ensuring quality education in specialist schools

 Issued by: Impak

 

Specialist schools aim to be centres of excellence in their chosen specialism. While these schools encourage children to excel in certain areas, e.g. music, dance, or the equestrian arts, they also value quality education.

To ensure that learners attending specialist schools obtain a qualification that will allow them to write the National Senior Certificate in grade 12 (and to attend university should they wish), Impak provides such schools with quality educational products and services.

"Specialist independent schools provide learners with opportunities they would never have had in public schools," says Stefan Botha, CEO of Impak. "As a leading curriculum and service provider, our aim is to offer such schools the necessary support to ensure that learners acquire both the academic knowledge and the vocational skills needed to thrive."

A specialist school benefitting from Impak's offering is Wings Aviation Academy in Fort Beaufort. As the only school of its kind in Africa, it offers learners who have a passion for flying the opportunity to simultaneously complete a matric certificate and obtain a pilot's licence.

Founded by Dr André Verster, Wings Aviation Academy has been registered with Impak for the past three years. Catering to learners from Grade 8 to 12, it uses Impak's leading-edge CAPS aligned curriculum to not only ensure that learners get a quality education, but also because it allows them the freedom to work according to their own schedule.

"Impak offers quality learning material at an affordable cost, and the curriculum is flexible enough to allow us to incorporate practical components that provide our learners the opportunity to learn about aviation and build up flying hours while finishing Grade 12. This means that our learners are three years ahead of those who learn to fly after finishing school," explains Verster.

Of the 28 learners currently registered at Wings, 12 have already obtained their student pilot licences, and five their pilot's licenses. The school also boasts a technical department that teaches practical and theoretical aviation engineering.

According to Verster, Impak's user-friendly learning material means that learners are able to understand and complete the work on their own; self-directed learning is key at the school as learners are encouraged to responsibility for themselves. In addition, the school has benefited immensely from Impak's assessment and administrative support.

"At Wings, our passion and vision are to equip learners with a life skill, not just a Grade 12 certificate. Thanks to Impak, we are able to ensure that our learners not only receive excellent practical tuition, but also a quality academic education."

"Schools such as Wings Aviation Academy use our curriculum to accommodate learners who ordinarily could not achieve their potential or prepare for their chosen career in a mainstream school. We are proud to play a part in affording such learners the opportunity to achieve academically while reaching for their dreams," says Botha.

Impak was established in 2002 as a curriculum provider to home education learners. The company has experienced remarkable growth over the past 13 years and last year expanded its offering to include a broad range of education products and services for schools and tutors. Impak currently serves more than to 10,000 learners and more than 300 schools and tutors across South Africa. PSG Private Equity, a 100% subsidiary of the PSG Group, owns a majority share in Impak.