Recently, during the week of the 21st to the 29th of January 2012 I went for a outreach programme with my MRYE team to visit some schools in rural areas of Free State and KwaZulu Natal. As a team we had more fun and the experience was overwhelming to some of our team members. During this trip I have learnt a lot of things as I was dealing with different characters and also faced challenging predicament which needed my attention for the benefit of the team and learners that we serve. Above all, It was a trip to remember through all challenges we had came across.
With that said, I would like to reflect more on a particular school we visited in KZN at a place called Mondlo. I was shocked and fascinated by the condition and environment at which learners are learning under. The school had only two rowed blocks and the total number of classes was about seven. All classes have broken windows, which means the cold during winter is unbearable, the was no ceiling on the roof nor chalk board for teachers to write on. Teachers do not have proper offices for doing their administration work and resources like a school land-line to access internet and network to use a fax machine or telephone. I wondered and thought to myself, how possible is it that proper education can manifest under these conditions.
As I was asking my self many questions and pondering over this matter, I then discovered that the school had a 19% metric pass rate in 2010 and improved by 80% last year. However, with such a tremendous improvement a lot of learners still couldn't qualify to register to higher institutions to further their studies as they would wish to do so after completing their metric. It was a shocking and devastating fact to see young adults walk more that ten to twenty kilometers everyday just to go to school and learn under such conditions. It also take a teacher with good courage and motivation to teach and ensure that learners gain proper education and knowledge to perform optimally on their academics. In this modern society and paradigm we are leaving in, it take one with Information computer technology skills to be global competitive with regards to acquiring information to better their lives.
What you see on the picture provided above, is a group of learners hungry for information that will open doors for them as they continue learning in that unfriendly environment. It needs people with good courage to go out there and assist these pupil to prosper through mentorship to ensure that such learners have a brighter future. Sometimes, when someone has fallen he/she needs a hand to be picked up and rise again and as people we sometimes do not help those who have fallen as we are busy focusing on running own tracks.
Over and above, I have great respect to see people who were brought up in such environment prosper as this implies they are greater than their situation. This mean they can rise up to any thing that is of a challenge in their lives because they understand the most important principles of life and that is perseverance, respect, persistence, hard work and faith in what they do.
