On the 5th of March 2016, IkamvaYouth alumni and tutors were invited to attend a workshop aimed at helping them improve their CV writing and interview skills. This was an opportunity for our Ikamvanites to learn some valuable job hunting skills from each other, as well as from our HR manager and Communications Coordinator, who co-facilitated the workshop. We asked one of the workshop attendees, Aphiwe Sobutyu to give us his take on the event. Here’s what he had to say:
It was a day filled with fun and surprises when I attended a CV writing workshop with other IkamvaYouth Alumni. I always thought that my CV was OKAY… but guess what, I was fooling myself, because on that day I discovered that my CV is [not that great] and it needed to be pimped.
On the day of the workshop I learned that no matter what job or industry you’re applying for, you will need a CV in the process of the application, we were also told about which information to include in our CVs and why it is important to tell it as it is, for it represent who you are and the other things that you have engaged in, in the past.
That was a very great workshop and I hope it can spread from the alumni group to the learners, for they can benefit from it and be equipped with the right skills – learning CV writing while they still in high school.
Aphiwe matriculated in 2012, and is currently studying Public Management at CPUT. He is also a dedicated tutor at the Nyanga branch.
IkamvaYouth is committed to supporting its alumni and tutor community through providing access to various opportunities for self-development. The next workshop is coming up on the 20th of May (Yip, that’s TOMORROW!), check out the details here.
The news of the passing of one of our Ikamvanites has come as a shock to the IkamvaYouth family. Thembakazi Nyakatya joined IkamvaYouth in 2008 while she was doing grade 10. As a young girl from the township, education was the only option for her to become successful. Despite the peer pressure young girls experience in townships she chose education and kept up her attendance until she matriculated in 2010. While she was in grade 12, her positive influence encouraged her little brother Unathi Nyakatya to join the programme, thereafter her second brother Bazise Nyakatya in 2012. In 2011 Thembakazi came back to IkamvaYouth as a tutor. She believed that her background could not be an obstacle to achieving her goals, and it wasn’t. In 2014 she graduated with a diploma in Management at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology. In April 2016, while she was sick in hospital, she missed her BTech graduation.
Thembakazi was a role model not only to her siblings, but to many in the IkamvaYouth family and the community at large. We would like to express our condolences to her family. Lala Ngoxolo Thembsie.
The Mahikeng Branch in the North West is fortunate to have tutors who are committed to playing a vital role in the lives of Ikamvanites. These passionate tutors take time from their busy study schedules to help learners increase their chances of accessing a dignified living. What is exciting about our diverse team of tutors is the fact that it also includes students who are very close to completing their tertiary studies, which serves to further inspire our learners. Tutors not only dedicate their time, but also their knowledge and understanding of the different subjects they did in high school. They also ensure that by the time the learners leave the sessions they have a clearer understanding of their school work. The greatest thing about our tutoring sessions would be that learners show dedication to their work and reaching their life goals. While our learners focus on improving their performance, they also continuously inspire one another. Those learners who are performing fairly well use the tutoring space to assist one another through collaboration and peer-to-peer support. In the end the hard work the Ikamvanites put in pays off.
The tutors see a lot of potential in the learners and believe that they can obtain the results they need to help themselves out of poverty through education. Learners in townships are faced with challenging problems such as having to drop out of school and having to resort to other choices which they believe they can improve their lives.One of the IkamvaYouth values is openness and integrity and it is well practiced in our branch as most of our learners are open about the challenges they face and are in an environment where they can access different information on how to find solutions.
Hearing some of our tutor’s views:
Quinta NAWEJI Yombi from Taletso FET College has been part of the branch since September 2015 and this is what he had to say about our learners and the tutoring space as a whole. “Our ikamvanites show respect to the tutors, and each other even though they hail from different schools. They all want to see themselves with a bright future, they show openness and are able to show commitment to improve their marks by working together as one. Their openness is so much that that they allow us do our work as tutors and this impact will certainly lead them to a bright future, as they will also be able to give back to the community the kind of knowledge they have achieved. We believe that as tutors and ikamvanites, to serve tomorrow’s new generation is through-education. Nelson Mandela said “Education is a very powerful weapon that we can use to change the world”.
Selorm Awudestey is a tutor in Geography, English, History and help with other subjects. She started volunteering at IkamvaYouth last year.My experience so far with the learners has been interesting. As these learners are all unique and each have different or similar approaches towards their studies. There are some learners who are shy to ask for assistance while others are talkative and don’t mind asking a lot of questions of which benefits the entire group. I try my best to implement a need for studying and encourage them to read as much as possible, not just their school books but various books to help them think better, analyze different subjects from all perspectives and generally to learn how to think out of the box.
A view from our Ikamvanites:
Joese’ Mentoor a learner from Danville Secondary School outlined that his experience is so unbelievable because he has never achieved any high marks in his school work until he joined IkamvaYouth. “I am so grateful to IkamvaYouth for giving me the opportunity to make my parents and this organisation-proud.”
Omphemetse Serapelo Learner from Leteane Secondary School mentioned that she loves IkamvaYouth as it helped her to improve her marks, “to learn communication skills between different peers around me and to be a better person as a whole. Sis B and Ausi Bonolo are the best, they give us the kind of support we need to be comfortable and have confidence in ourselves. We are grateful to have tutors who are able to explain the work in full to us and have the patience to explain it more than 5 times without being annoyed about it.” She said
Our organisation is truly fortunate to work with these amazing Ikamvanites
For more information about IkamvaYouth Mahikeng please contact: info@ikamvayouth.org
Our newly launched Kuyasa branch hosted its first open-day on Saturday the 23rd of April 2016. Learners and parents gathered at Kuyasa Library, where our new branch is located. New applicants from different schools across Khayelitsha came to hear what IkamvaYouth has to offer for the rest of the year. A total number of 110 learners and parents were in attendance.
Zukiswa Gavu-Booi, the new Programme coordinator of IkamvaYouth Kuyasa, gave a warm welcome to all the learners, parents and volunteers present at the event. Zukiswa also shared a presentation about IkamvaYouth and its programmes then proceeded to explain the IkamvaYouth model and what is expected of an Ikamvanite. Part of that was outlining the 75% attendance requirement and explaining the reasons for dismissals/kick-outs.
It was exciting to see the commitment from the parents and learners; even on a cold and rainy day, the training room at Kuyasa Library was fully packed and everyone in attendance stayed until the end of the program.
A Q&A session was facilitated by our ever enthusiastic Makhaza Branch Coordinator, Busiswa”Ms. B”Dayimani. Parents and learners asked very relevant questions, such as how to overcome challenges that might impact a learner’s attendance to which Busiswa gave clarity.
We opened this branch because we saw a great demand from the learners around Kuyasa, Harare and surroundings. Learners at IkamvaYouth Kuyasa will not only be tutored, but they will also get the chance to take part in other programmes that IkamvaYouth offers such as Career Guidance, Mentoring, Operation Fikelela (Computer literacy), Health and Life skills as well as Media Image and Expression where they will be given an opportunity to showcase their talents in poetry, visual arts, and music.
We’re in the process of recruiting tutors for the branch, so if you are interested in becoming a volunteer tutor you can sign up here.
Lloyd Lungu