So there we were, Monday morning, June the 30th, in buses from Chesterville and Umlazi all headed to DUT Steve Biko Campus. There was excitement, joy and very high expectations from everyone, learners, staff members and tutors. For those who were joining us for the first time, it was a matter of experiencing the most talked about gathering in the calendar of the IkamvaYouth Organization. Yes, it was time for the most exciting 2weeks for all Ikamvanites in the KZN region: Winter School.
tutoring session in the morning
In the morning, Learners had normal tutoring and in the afternoon there were activities. Our very own version of the Amazing Race was amongst those. We had a workshop with learners being encouraged about the importance of working with each other, the importance of listening to one another views amongst other things. While that was running another group of learners were with ASN who conducted some team building activities with the learners and hosted some very educational talks with the learners afterwards about leadership. The activities conducted were really helpful in the sense that the learners really enjoyed working in teams to achieve certain goals.
Rooted Souls in collaboration with Science Spaza performing for the learners
A presentation for the learners about How to save money was done by Capitec. This didn’t just help grow the learners financially but it also made them think a lot about their spending habits, which is always a good start for everyone seeking financial awareness. Experiments, hiphop and live performances got the whole IYKZN team excited and picked up some very fascinating facts about science along with it all thanks to the Science Spaza team. We had graphic Design students, information technology as well as a lot more workshops that were running. Learners also had an opportunity to go to excursions such as Phezulu Safari, Independent Newspapers, UKZN Howard to watch Footloose amongst others.
Learners on an excursion
Health and Wellness Day
The last day of Winter School is the Health and Wellness Day where learners have an opportunity to play games and take part in health related activities. The games that were prepared were sack Race, Netball, Soccer, marbels, uShumpu, Amatshe, Magalobhe and the Relays. Competition was tight. As the games went ABI had music playing and got everyone dancing. The competing teams were red, yellow, orange, green, blue and the purple team. Lunch was served and the winners of the 2014 winter School were the Yellow team.
A lot of running around was being done by the tutors and staff members to ensuring a smooth running throughout winter school and the learners’ response towards that hard work put in was nothing less than well received.
It wouldn’t have been possible without the help of ABI),the Municipality for providing transport for the learners, the tutors, the facilitators such as Science Spaza, love life , DUT IT students, DUT Graphic Design students, Impucuko, Sam Moodley, ASN, Ithembalabantu and Capitec and Joy Olivier. It truly was a pleasure working with everyone.
IkamvaYouth is looking for a highly motivated, creative thinker to join the Cape Town office and assist with the Community Collaboration project and general administration for at least 3 days a week from September – December 2014. The internship is voluntary, but a stipend will be offered to cover transport costs.
IkamvaYouth has a 10 year track record of changing the face of education in townships by enabling disadvantaged youth to pull themselves and each other out of poverty with education. IkamvaYouth now has 10 branches throughout the country and is a by-youth-for-youth South African organisation that equips learners with knowledge, skills, networks and resources to access tertiary education and/or employment opportunities once they matriculate. Learners in Grades 8-12 participate in after-school tutoring, career guidance and mentoring provided by volunteers. Most volunteers are university students and many are ex-learners who have returned to pay-it-forward.
The community collaboration project is an initiative that is building a network of organisations who are working in the after-school space and strengthening these programmes through the sharing of resources, ideas and solutions. The ultimate aim is to replicate the impact that IkamvaYouth has had by supporting other organisations to deliver high impact tutoring programmes.
The project is in its pilot phase and has a lot of scope for development and expansion. We are therefore looking for an intern who is flexible and eager to run with projects and take initiative to make it happen! You will work with vaious staff members and get introduced to many different aspects of the organisation.
The responsibilities will include (but are not limited to):
- Desktop research e.g. learning resources, organisational profiles, education statistics, technology solutions etc. etc.
- Potential field research
- Networking with community organisations
- Scheduling and coordinating events
- Marketing and social media
- Writing; articles, training materials,
- Assisting with coordination and facilitation of workshops
- Consolidating data and assisting with the use of education management software
Specific requirements:
- Undergraduate degree (or other tertiary level qualification) preferably in a related field
- Excellent written and spoken English
- Fluency in an additional National language Xhosa/Afrikaans is a huge advantage
- Own transport/drivers license
- Use of own laptop
- Comfortable working in township communities
- Competent with Word, Excel and Power Point
General requirements:
- Positive friendly attitude
- Responsible and reliable
- Committed to making a difference
- Have a social entrepreneurial spirit
Watch this short animation about our model and impact. Please make sure that you have read about the organisation on our website before submitting an application. If you are interested in this position please email your CV and motivational letter to zoe@ikamvayouth.org by 29th August 2014.
Varsity College continues to demonstrate the willingness and wilfulness to partner with IY in our vision for young people’s education in South Africa. Hosting Ikamvanites for the Cell C girl child day in May was only the start. Toward the end of our Winter School in July, the college donated boxes of files, folders, notes and thesauruses for Ikamvanites to use. WC and Joza Matrics benefitted from the use of the thesauruses during their matric camp and now WC branches have added to their libraries, which received 7 thesauruses each. The learners have also received folders in which to store notes, timetables and stationery, and notes on different subjects that have previously been used by Varsity College students.
Thank you Varsity College for your generous donation!
Palm Stationery Manufactures Sponsors Makhaza with over 300 books
More than 10 Boxes full of books and stationery were delivered in Makhaza on Friday, 8 August 2014 by Palm Stationery. This donation was made to assist learners in keeping record of their studied material and to be able to evaluate their work.
Palm Stationery Manufactures are based in KwaZulu Natal, the company was established in August 1995. Palm Stationery Manufacturers have grown from a manufacturer of solely schoolbooks to manufacturers of an entire range of scholastic and office stationery products as well as polypropylene document filing solutions.
They have recognized the great impact that has been achieved by IY. Their amazing contribution will insure that learners have stationery supplies up until they close school for the year.
The great contribution was welcomed with such excitement by the learners as each one got a book, ruler, pencil and pen that they can always bring with them when to their tutoring sessions. The books will serve as study and revision notes for all learners for all the work they cover in tutoring sessions and practicing at home.
One grade 8 learner beaming with excitement said “These books have come at a right time as all my books are near full, I am thankful to the amazing people at Palm stationery”.
On behalf of IkamvaYouth and its learners, I would like to forward a huge thank you for your generous contribution in support of our mission.
After an intense 2 weeks of tutoring and workshops for almost 100 learners, Nyanga tutors spent a very well deserved afternoon at Ace’s in Khatyelitsha, for their tutor appreciation.
This year’s tutor appreciation was unique and extra special, since the majority of tutors who participated are Nyanga ex-learners from the classes of 2011, 12 and 13. As such, the tutor appreciation became something of a re-union for these Nyanganites who were once learners together, and are now paying it forward by tutoring younger ikamvanites during school and university holidays.
The superheroes chose the theme ‘Lets cool the sweat’ in recognition of the hard work they put in over the 10 days of Winter School during the July holidays.
One of the tutors had the following to say: ‘I really agree with the team when they say we’re cooling the sweat. We worked very hard those 10 days; running to Zolani Centre in the morning to catch the bus, intense tutor meetings with disagreements and livey debates and of course the tutoring everyday.’
Well done to our committed volunteers who made Winter School a success, and your appreciation event was well deserved!
On the 9th of August 2014, IY Nyanga attended a Women’s Day event organised by Ilitha labantu in Gugulethu. Nyanga branch com’s head of Health and Life skills, Onelisa Qwaka attended the event on behalf of the branch.
The theme of the event was ‘Young women emancipating themselves from abusive relationships.’ The day was a mix of activities, including group discussions, presentations, and individual opinion sharing. The ladies got a platform to outline the challenges women face in the different environments, such as school, work, home and on the street. A number of issues came up, including teenage pregnancy, substance abuse, crime and gangsterism and child abuse.
After outlining the different issues affecting women, the women did mini workshops to find solutions for the challenges. Key lessons garnered from this exercise were that women abuse is everyone’s problem and communities should unite in fighting it. The group also identified certain tools that can be used to fight abuse and some were as follows: introspection, reporting abuse, educating women about their rights and trusting one’s instincts.
Nyanga representative, Onelisa Qwaka had the following to say, after the event: ‘ It was successful indeed, and we left the hall feeling empowered, happy and seeing room for improvement in their lives.’
A very special thank you to Ilitha labantu f Young women emancipating themselves…
or inviting IkamvaYouth to this important workshop.
IY JOINS THE COMMUNITY IN SAYING NO TO WOMEN ABUSE!
Lloyd Lungu