This last weekend Nyanganites got together for a highly successful Strategic Planning Weekend, SPW. Learners, volunteers and staff put their heads together and mapped out the year plan for 2013.
Nyanga learners showed that they are youngsters with a vision for their branch and are more than capable of taking their future into their own hands. Together, they outlined the challenges they currently face at the branch, and then came up with solutions to those challenges. The volunteers also brought their best to the session, guiding the learners and assisting them in expressing themselves and working on the different issues that came up during the weekend.
On the last day of the SPW, Nyanganites elected their 2013 branch committee, with some Nyanganites self-nominating and motivating why they wanted to be part of certain portfolios. It was highly gratifying to see the learners and volunteers confidently speaking out and outlining their own strong points.
Find the full report on the following link: spw_report_2013.pdf
The Nedbank My Future, My Career takes learners on behind-the-scenes tours of various career options and inspires learners to set new, informed tertiary study and career goal. All presentations were communicated and delivered via produced films and are screened at Ster- Kinekor cinemas nationwide.
17 March 2013, 27 Gauteng Ikamvanites attended the Career Day in Brooklyn, Pretoria. We left Midrand at 7:00 and we were back at 13:00. Screenings started at 8:30 and lasted for three hours. Various fields of study were screened at the cinema. Each broadcast consisted of discussions from professionals and academics from each featured field of study. Information presented included; guides to choosing the right subject for the right career, tertiary institution entrance requirement, bursary information and contact information.
The learners were able to appreciate the films broadcasted to them. Some of the feedback from them showed how informative the broadcasts were and the value that the Career Day imparts as a basis for decision making when they leave school. Here are some learners’ comments about the presentation.
“The presentation helped me to choose a second career choice” – Mpho (Ivory Park)
“I gained a lot of insight about subject choices and careers” – Cassandra (Ebony Park)
The day ended well, and it was a memorable occasion that I am sure will serve the Ikamvanites in good stead in terms of making informed decisions about their future.
This past weekend, Nyanga learners participated in an important workshop on fire awareness and safety. The workshop was conducted by the City of Cape Town’s fire and rescue services, represented by Ms Nombeko Kopele. The learners gathered in their usual tutoring venue at Zolani Centre and learnt interesting and important realities about fire.
The workshop is very relevant to the learners because fire is a real part of many of their lives as some have had their homes destroyed by it. The workshop covered useful practices to engage in when working with fire, including how to handle live flame, such as candles and some lamps; first aid when someone has been subjected to burns and the reporting protocol when there is a fire. The learners got to see pictures of fires in a variety of settings, such as veld and mountain fires, fires in informal settlements and other kinds of buildings, and visually learnt about the kind of devastation fire can cause.
Ms Kopele divided the learners into different groups and the grade 11 and 12 session doubled up as a career guidance workshop, as she spoke to them about fire fighting as a career path that is open to them post Matric. The learners had many questions about the subject choices they should make in order to work in this field and also the benefits of being a fire-fighter. Ms Kopele was up to the task and answered all the questions posed to her. At the end of the workshop were 90 Ikamvanites well informed about fire safety and protocols.
A very special thank you to the City of Cape Town for delivering this important workshop to the Nyanganites.
Its 2013, we are all settling comfortably into the year. Already we’re headed towards the end of the first term, but that does not mean we do not need to get organised. Each learner is taught how to be responsible and keep tab of everything they do, one of our sponsors gave the learners a head start.
Our great sponsor Capitec realises that we all still need to keep our ducks in a row as we head into the rest of the year. As such, they have kindly donated awesome 2013 diaries to our Matriculants for the year 2013. We had a small diary hand-out this past Saturday as a way to inspire the younger grades to do well and get to matric as well.
The leaners themselves were very happy to receive the wonderful gifts from our valued sponsor; everyone needs a diary after all.
We would like to pass on our gratitude for the kind, and very welcome surprise from Capitec.
On the 9th of March 2013, Ivory Park had its first parent’s meeting. It was exciting to see such an impressive turn out from parents who were willing to work together with IkamvaYouth in achieving some of its goals. Parents who were not able to attend did make an effort to send someone on their behalf. This showed that the parents were very dedicated to IkamvaYouth and also to its programmes. This in turn also proved that the parents have interest in their children’s education.
A number of parents needed clarity as to what we are about. Some of the important issues that were addressed included the following: Financial assistance, the kickout system, parental involvement (consent forms, word of mouth as a recruitment method) and sexual education at home. It’s only been 11 weeks since the academic year started, but it is fulfilling to know that we have made a difference in some of our learners’ lives.
Parents commended us on the work we do and assured us of their continued support to the organisation. Ms Nonyane(Gr12 parent) volunteered to be the representative of parents for our branch. Her commitment and optimism makes her standout. We are happy to have her in our team. Parental involvement is an important factor for learner’s academic achievement.
All the above proves beyond any doubt that our first meeting was a success. We all look forward to a fruitful year.
Lloyd Lungu