The Mamelodi Ikamvanites braved the early morning iciness of winter to come to Winter School during the June holidays. After heating up their bodies through ice-breakers and tea, they got to work. Past papers, exercises, quizzes, discussions and games, you name it, we did it in an effort to prepare for the new academic term by revising all of the work the Ikamvanites had done earlier in the year and struggled with. Various organisations and individuals also came in daily to discuss issues outside of the classroom. We had motivational speakers, an image consultant even a yoga specialist to name a few. The proverbial cherry that came on top of the cake that was all the hard work and effort of the students, was the Talent show at the end of the second week of winter school in which the learners got the chance to show off their more creative talents outside of the classroom. All in all, Winter School was a resounding success that we can all be very proud of. Well done Ikamva!
After Winter School, the Matric pupils joined us for a week of preparations aimed solely at the matric learners. As the Matrics draw nearer and nearer to their final exams, they understand the need to place a greater emphasis on their studies. The class of 2016 came prepared with work and enthusiasm and a willingness to learn anything and everything they could, before the third term started. By the end of the week, the Matrics were exhausted from all the hard work but come Finals, they’ll be more than ready to tackle any academic challenges that they are faced with!
With the election right around the corner, many South Africans have been discussing choices. The idea that we are responsible for deciding the future of our great nation. The Ikamvanites made a choice when they came into the program at the start of the year. They chose to believe in success. They chose to believe in a future where education provides the tools with which one can ultimately achieve one’s dreams. They chose to believe in themselves. And as we head towards the second half of what has turned out to be an adventurous and exciting year, it is up to us, the people who make Ikamva a pillar of hope in a community plagued by issues like nyoape and blessers, to choose success yet again. As former President, Nelson Mandela, once said, “[e]ducation is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” By choosing to invest in their futures, Ikamvanites are arming themselves with the tools that they’ll need when they battle a world in which knowledge is power.
It is week 7 of tutoring, we are sitting in our Atlantis office and thinking, “we have come this far!” Of course, we still have a long way to go but if you think of the time when we first introduced IkamvaYouth to the community of Atlantis in June, presenting to schools and community forums, we had no idea how things would pan out as much as we had tried to plan for everything.
Tutor Orientation/Training 23 July
6-7 weeks ago on the 23rd of July 2016, IY Atlantis held its first tutor training/orientation day at IkamvaHouse in Salt River. This was the first time that the Atlantis superheroes met and they immediately hit it off! The Community Collaboration Department were the head facilitators for the day, Zoe Mann & Pepe Hendricks, and they hosted the training for the first time IkamvaYouth tutors. The tutoring methodology/pedagogy was the main topic of the day but the Superheroes also had a chance to be introduced to the history, vision & mission, values and the IkamvaYouth Model.
Andile Miya, a final year law student from UWC said, “I had no idea, how much detail goes into tutoring. Especially having to balance transferring information without coming across like a teacher and using the right questioning.” After a whole 5 hour training/orientation, the Superheroes were confident to go and begin tutoring the Atlantis Ikamvanites.
IkamvaYouth Atlantis Orientation Day
The day we had been waiting for had arrived, kickoff time! Saturday morning, 10am; it was a lovely sunny day in Atlantis and the Proteus Secondary School Hall was filling up with curious parents and eager learners, ready to hear about the branch.
Mr Smith, a science teacher at Proteus Secondary School, welcomed all who were in attendance and urged the parents to hear out what IkamvaYouth had to say. Simone Peinke, our Western Cape District Coordinator, kicked off the programme by sharing a bit of background about IkamvaYouth. Yanga Totyi, the Atlantis Branch Coordinator, talked about the programmes IkamvaYouth offers emphasing the core of the programme which is Tutoring as well as covering the Career guidance and Mentoring aspects of the programme.
The audience was then engaged on what the factors they had in mind that will make the programme a success. One of the parents mentioned that commitment from the learner, the parents and IkamvaYouth will make a big contribution, the community is one filled with challenges but all stakeholders should unite in the spirit of making this work! Afterwards, the parents had a chance to sign a pledge poster which will serve as a reminder that WE WILL MAKE IKAMVAYOUTH ATLANTIS WORK!
First Week Of Tutoring
First time Ikamvanites gathered at Proteus High School, eager and ready to begin with this much anticipated programme. Andile Miya, Chante van der Merwe, Namhla Kantolo, Phathiswa Silwana had their capes on, ready to begin with the agenda for the week and finally, it all began.
This is what a few Ikamvanites had to say;
“We hope that IkamvaYouth can help us learn how to learn. We are happy that this programme came to our community and we are ready to work hard to make sure that we do better in our studies.”
– Clyde Muller, Grade 10 Proteus Secondary School Learner
“If you look at our community, our peers are joining gangs and participating in a lot of bad activities. I could be there with them but I chose my education first and that is why I joined IkamvaYouth. We want IkamvaYouth to help us become something one day!”
– Marlin Cupido, Grade 11 Proteus Secondary School Learner
“It is such a cool thing interacting and learning with learners from a different school. We get to share the different explanations we get in class and explaining to one another makes it easier to remember the work.”
– Amber Donson, Grade 11 Atlantis Secondary School Learner
Despite the branch being far from Cape Town, superheroes came to make sure these learners get help. Nerves & excitement are to be expected in the beginning of something new and through all of that, Ikamvanites made it through week one and they were encouraged more than ever to make it work!
Today…
It’s week 7 and here we are again, ready to begin with another week of tutoring. We look forward to what the week brings and we also look forward to the very first parent meeting on Saturday.
Really the Ikamvanites are MAKING IT WORK!
On Saturday, 27th August 2016, we received a surprise visit from one of our Accounting tutors, Nosipho Mjiyakho who works for PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC). This was not just an ordinary visit, Nosipho was sent by PwC to drop off stationery for all our learners at the branch. This was really exciting news for us as we know that our learners are in need of stationery so we were also excited as staff to share the news with the learners.
The stationery donation included exercise books, flip files, exam pads, pens, rulers, erasers, pencils and even calculators. We are so grateful to PwC for this gift because it will really be helpful for all our learners.
We distributed the stationery packs to our grade 9 and 10 learners on Monday the of 29th of August and to our grade 11 and 12 learners on Tuesday the 30th of August. The learners were all smiles after receiving their stationery as this was really unexpected. After the Post Mandela Day Celebration at the branch earlier this month, we did not expect that PwC would come back to the branch so soon. We are really grateful.
One of our grade 9 learners, Ayakha Ndzuzo said: “PwC has really helped me with the stationery, I am grateful and cannot wait for the PwC employees to visit the branch again so that I can say thank you in person”
The Nyanga branch is thankful to PwC, its employees and our amazing superhero tutor Nosipho Mjiyakho.
Dikikapa is an organisation that aims to inspire and motivate the youth of South Africa, particularly those who are still in high school, to use education as a tool to achieve their dreams and contribute positively to society. The Dikakapa Everyday Heroes workshop took place on Saturday 20th of August with 40 eager grade 10 learners participating. The workshop was vital as it placed an emphasis on career guidance for the learners who are still thinking about their career path. The workshop was facilitated by the ever vibrant, Hlumani Ndlovu, who is the one of the founders of the organisation.
The workshop focused on inspiring and motivating young minds in order for them to become independent. Fundamentally, the workshop was about the discovery of who you really are, knowing that you are human enough to make mistakes and to learn from them. It also addressed changing the manner in which young people think. ‘’We were inspired to stop thinking about failures because this reinforces negative ideas/thoughts in our minds, thereby not allowing opportunity for positive thinking’’ Aluncedo Mzamo, grade 10 learner, shared about the workshop.
The other burning issue identified were the destructive decisions that young people make in their lives. Engaging conversations about self-value were tackled, with some learners sharing that they sometimes value the opinions of their friends and what is trending in pop culture above their own which proves to be disastrous in achieving their set goals for academic development. “Make decisions that will coincide with your dreams and not allow others to taint your future plans’’ was the theme from the discussion.
“’We learned that anyone is capable of changing their circumstances for the better. and this can be achieved through hard work. “ enjoyed reading and participating in the expressive experience’’ said Zizipho Paule, grade 10 learner.
‘’The message I have for you is to take control of your future. Anything can be accomplished if you are dedicated and apply yourself. Aim high for a better academic future“, Hlumani said in closing.
To find out more about Dikikapa, you can visit their facebook page Dikikapa- Everyday Heroes
On Friday 12th August 2016, the grade 9 and 10 learners were fortunate to spend some time with employees from Pricewatercoopers (PwC). It was an exciting afternoon for our learners as they were only expecting a talk before getting back to their books. Instead the PriceWaterCoopers employees brought along board games marking the beginning of a fun-filled afternoon.
The learners were divided into small groups and played different games including 30 Seconds, Monopoly, Twister, Wikipedia, Dominos, Snakes and Ladders and many more. With music playing in the background and the learners having fun with the guests, it felt like a celebration.
One of grade 10 learners, Yolanda Ntesha said: “It was enjoyable and it would be really great if PwC employees decided to come back again and spend time with us. We enjoy having visitors at the branch.”
It is always great to see people taking time out of their lives to give back to young people. We appreciate PwC for availing their employees. We are grateful as IkamvaYouth and our learners definitely enjoyed it. At the end of the event, PwC handed over food packs for the learners and trust me when I say it was a wonderful treat for our learners.
Thank you PwC ?
The University of Cape Town Graduate School of Business, through two of its specialised units, continues to invest in Africa’s future leaders, and is calling for scholarship applications from across the continent for its 2017 academic year..
The UCT Graduate School of Business (GSB) is inviting motivated leaders from across Africa, with a track record of action who would like an injection of skills to help them go further to apply for one of several scholarships available at the school in 2017. In recent years the GSB, through the Bertha Centre for Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship and the MTN Solution Space, has made significant investments in the development of Africa’s future leaders through access to scholarships.
To date over R6 million has been committed in scholarship funding for GSB Masters and PhD programmes. This has been made possible through the generous support of funders, including GSB Alumni, the Bertha Foundation, the Canon Collins Trust and the MTN Group. “We’re delighted to be able to continue this funding into 2017 and are inviting prospective African students who would like to study either towards their MBA or Master of Philosophy in Inclusive Innovation at the UCT GSB to apply for a scholarship,” says Dr Francois Bonnici, Director of theBertha Centre.“Through the scholarships the Bertha Centre hopes to support those who want to address our continent’s greatest challenges. We want to encourage especially those seeking social change to apply and those interested in understanding and/or challenging the current ideas of business and what it does and is used for,” says Bonnici.
The Bertha Centre, a specialised unit at the GSB established in 2011 in partnership with the Bertha Foundation, seeks to support: changemakers; social activists, entrepreneurs and innovators and out-of-the-box thinkers. Previous Bertha Centre Scholars include co-founder of Lumanki, Francois Petousis; Pimp-my-Book founder Mpodumo Doubada as well as Business Day columnist, and Livity Africa Deputy Managing Director Zamandlovu Ndlovu. “Through the generous support of our donors and sponsors we are able to cover tuition fees for our Masters programmes and provide additional financial support for living and travel costs where needed,” says Sarah-Anne Arnold, Manager of the MTN Solution Space.The MTN Solution Space, established at the GSB in 2014 in partnership with the MTN Group, seeks to support problem solvers – doers, makers, thinkers and creators – who continually seek to advance and leverage technologies for the well-being of Africans. Previous MTN Scholars include Rudzani Mulaudzi co-founder of Gradesmatch and Lianne du Toit Vice Chairperson of Silicon Cape and founder of GovHackSA. “While scholars are distinct in their professional goals and ambitions and hail from all over Africa, they are united in their common goal: to have a significant impact in the world,” says Arnold.
Geoff Bick, Acting Director of the GSB, says that the school continues to enjoy an outstanding reputation both in Africa and more broadly and is well placed to further the careers and increase the impact of committed change makers.“The UCT GSB full-time MBA is still the only MBA in Africa to be ranked in the Financial Times ranking of the top 100 MBAs in the world and it offers one of the best business educations on the continent. The GSB MBA curriculum is also the first in Africa to incorporate social innovation as a core subject. Equally groundbreaking is the MPhil in Inclusive Innovation – an interdisciplinary research-based degree that leads to the practical prototyping of new business models aligned to African markets – a first of it’s kind on the continent,” he says..
To be eligible for the scholarships, applicants must be a citizen of an African country, and must first be accepted onto the programme of their choice.
Anyone interested in applying for a Bertha Centre or MTN Solution Space scholarship should visit the GSB Scholarships information web page here. The deadline for applications is 31 October 2016.
Watch the MBA and MPhil videos on YouTube for more information on the programmes.
Lloyd Lungu