Ikamvanites in Grade 11 were honored to come into contact with Professor Jill Bradbury from Wits University and Doctor Jude Clarke, from the University of KwaZulu Natal, who came through to the Ebony Park Branch to talk to the learners about issues surrounding their identity and how it connects with Freedom Day. Doctor Jude, who was in charge of running the program has long been inspired by the IkamvaYouth story and felt that she needed to give back in the only way that she knew how, which was in drama, art and dance. About 160 learners converged at the Ebony Park Branch on the 27th of April (Freedom Day) and they were all excited to also be met by 10 psychology honors students from Wits University who were all geared up for a day of fun and exploration.
Doctor Jude said that in today’s world it is very significant to identify oneself with at least one thing (ones ethnicity, nationality, race, religion, or a particular belief) and be able to connect with others, who might be different from you. Many people still grapple with the notion of identity in many countries, regions, and various ways in order to fit or adapt into any environment (social, economic, cultural, political, etc). Ones identity determines ones position or situation in society whereever one lives. However, finding the right type of identity can be challenging for many people sometimes because of the difficulties they face in the process of choosing their identities.
The learners were all separated into groups of 20 and dance, art and drama became the fun ways in which they began to explore themselves and others. The workshop started at 9 a.m and only came to a close at 3:30pm.
Our Ikamvanites were all so inspired and were very thankful for a very unique and inspired filled day.
Masiphulele Fire Drill 2013
The day of the fire drill finally arrived and our learners attended with excitement and enthusiasm. Grade 11 and 12 were the first ones to be taught about fire safety on the 10th of April and the following day on the 11th was the grade 9 and 10 turn. Mr Donald from the Fish Hoek fire department led the workshop. The workshop for all the grades was more on a Q and A basis. Mr Donald taught them the causes of fire, prevention/precautions and about fire extinguishers.
Causes
- Paraffin stoves
- Candles/fire lamps
- Flammable liquids and aerosols
- Gas stoves
- Candles/Fire lamps
- Household appliances – clothes dryers, curling irons, hair dryers, refrigerators, freezers
- Chimneys that concentrate creosote
- Batteries
- Broken electrical lights
- Thunderstorms/lightning and many more
Mr Donald asked the learners the causes of fire, the learners mentioned the ones they knew, he helped them out and told them other ones they never expected that they could cause a fire, and they listed them down discussed them and moved on to preventions/ precautions.
Prevention
- Fire drills
- Fire proofing
- Fire alarm systems
- Fire extinguishers
- Fire stops
- Maintaining proper fire exist
- Prohibiting flammable materials in other parts of the buildings.
Mr Donald moved on to fire extinguishers, he finds the importance of everyone knowing how to use a fire extinguisher important, because you never know when you have to make use of it and there aren’t any fire brigades near. He told them the parts of the fire extinguisher he also taught them the use of the fire extinguishers and different parts and their names on the extinguisher
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Fire Extinguisher use
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Water
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Foam
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Dry Powder
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Wet Chemical
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Carbon Dioxide
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Carboneceous, wood, paper, textiles, hay, straw, linen, etc
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ü
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ü
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ü
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X
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ü
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Flammable Liquids, petrol, paraffin, wax ,paints, oils
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X
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ü
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ü
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ü
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X
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Gas, natural gas, butane acetylene methane, etc, container or mainly leak
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X
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X
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ü
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X
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X
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Electrical risks, mains in feed panels, kitchen equipment, welding rigs, transformers etc
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X
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X
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ü
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ü
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X
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Deep fat, deep fat fryers in open vast
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X
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X
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X
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X
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ü
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Mr Donald also taught them the parts of a fire extinguisher and their use, especially the important parts they have to be familiar with
Label
The label describes the type of extinguisher, different types are combustible, liquids, electrical and flammable metals, and always know the type of fire you are dealing with.
Handle and operating level
The handle and lever are located at the top at the extinguisher, in a case of fire you need to know how to handle it with control
Locking pin
The locking pin is a safety guard that should be left in position, until you are ready to use your extinguisher
Discharge nozzle
The nozzle is also at the top ad should be pointed in the direction of the fire when using the extinguisher
Pressure gauge
Is located at the top it indicated whether the tank is full or empty
After they were taught all of the parts and their uses, he asked them what they remembered and come up and explain, they also had question for Mr Donald and he was more than happy to answer the questions
Masiphumelele Strategic Weekend Planning
We held our annual Strategic Planning Weekend on 13-14th April 2013 at the Community Hall and local Library, respectively. We had 3 tutors and 41 learners in attendance on the first day; while we had 24 learners on the second day. Those who attended and participated, displayed understanding and knowledge of Ikamva Youth as well as willingness to effect change. The two days was filled with a lot of programmes, activities and games> On saterday, we looked at our vaulues, mission and vision, history of Masi branch its (timeline) then later on moved on to vision and time management. Lunch time came, and after that we focused on the swot analysis and looked at what the promblems a we face as a branch, our learners voiced themsleves and expressed their concerns but they excellently came up with solutions with the help fronm our tutors as well.
We closed our Saturday session on a high note everyone sharing what they enjoyed and learnt for the day and checking out.
On Sunday we focused on our portfolios and we elected the Masi branch com. All the portfolios were filled up with two members or more. The learners in each portfolio discussed what it entails to be in that particular portifolio and what is required from them, they successfully accomplished the task and they came up with great ideas with the help from other learners.
In closing, the SPW was a resounding success, having achieved its objectives and aims as well as forging good relations between the organisation, it’s learners and partners. We are incredibly excited about the future of the branch and the immense potential which is evident in the lives of the learners. We would sincerely like to thank the following for their labour of love and enthusiasm in making Masiphumelele branch what it is:Liesel Bakker; Susan Alexander; Community Hall and Library staff. A special thanks to our sponsors: the kind donations of Woolworths Foods, Fish Hoek and McDonald’s, Sun Valley, we were able to feed our hungry Ikamvanites for the duration of the weekend and this included delicious dessert. A special thanks to Veronica, librarian assistant at Masiphumelele library, for cooking a scrumptious chicken curry.
The weekend of the 20th of April saw Chesterville hosting its annual tutor training session at the Steve Biko campus at DUT. This tutor training session had been planned from the SPW weekend and to see it come alive in the way that it did made it an eventful day for all involved.
With a high number of new tutors this year, this experience was going to contribute to them being more knowledgeable about tutoring and IY’s oh so prevalent and distinct 1:5 ratio.
The session began with an icebreaker that at the end of it, all tutors were lightened up and ready to begin the session. Nelisa Luhabe (Branch Coordinator) welcomed everyone with open arms and set the tone for the day. The team began with revising and asking questions regarding information on the tutor training guide, Cheryl Nzama (Branch Assistant) and Nelisa then guided the team with answers and outlined the essentials of tutoring and how to deal with learner dynamics as a tutor. The tutor training guide also emphasizes all aspects that one needs to know in order to be a diligent tutor for the branch.
Fast forward to the activity “how to park a car”, if you are familiar with this activity then you would know how important it is that it be included in our tutor training session. In short the activity aims to help the tutor and everyone involved to know how to analyse a situation, share opinions in a group, to actively listen and most importantly to give each learner in that group equal attention. This activity saw tutors having what some would call “aha moments”, they better understood that no two learners are the same, that each learner understands/develops at a different pace and that for a tutor, it’s ok to say “I don’t know however I will call in another tutor to come in and assist” and that is how one of our values “peer to peer support” starts showing up.
Working in an environment with learners and tutors means that everyone needs to be armed with knowledge on how to deal with conflicts and the likes. So the activity ‘Metaphor of fire” tackled that in every sense.
The day ended with everyone carrying the responsibility of ensuring that Chesterville still maintain its 100% matric pass rate and to also focus more on making sure that all learners produce quality marks in all the grades. Tough ask! however with commitment and diligence from everyone involved, what’s impossible again? Nothing!!
The Chesterville branch held its Strategic Planning Weekend (SPW) on the weekend of the 16 & 17 March. The weekend was a great success given that a new Branch Committee was voted in and plans were put in place by the end of the weekend. Present at the event were tutors, learner representatives and staff of IY.
It was exciting to see how learners and tutors have taken ownership of the programmes. There was clarification of all portfolios and what role the portfolio heads who would be voted in would play. They were enthusiastic about putting plans in place for the year and learning from what either went wrong or didn’t happen last year. It was helpful to have experiences to learn from and to see that people had actually seen the light and they knew what was needed to improve this year. Commitment was highlighted as a vital thing in seeing these plans through this year. There was a lot of hardwork and fun at the same time.
Some of the portfolio groups mapping out and presenting ideas and plans for the year
We are looking forward to an eventful, fun-filled, educational and busy year ahead!
Lloyd Lungu