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.
IY has been really good to me, it helps us with school work and also gets us feeling better about ourselves, although sometimes it can be a pain in the neck but at the end of the day it’s really been helpful.
Winter school was totally epic and fun especially on our sports day. It was fantastic, there was this one fellow in the red team, who stood up on the ABI stage and was dancing; his name is Asanda Gumede Grade 11 learner, now soon to be in in Matric :D. He is pretty well known at IY, in fact a lot of people know him for his drama queen tendencies, laughing, making jokes those sort of things. I really enjoyed the sports day though.
Ikamva Youth helps us achieve our goals and what do I mean by that? Well let me tell you, IY helps learners especially matrics in entering university or any tertiary institution, even if you do not get accepted, no problem IY will help you no matter what. IY really helps everyone in the community to make their dreams come true through an educational foundation.
IY helps us with so many things, and I just want to give thanks to the staff, the tutors and sponsors, thank you for everything, it’s been real…
Credits to: Asanda Gumede
The experience with Zoe-Life and their ICS volunteers was amazing and educational to both tutors and learners that were involved in the workshop. We were taught different types of bullying; emotional bullying; physical bullying; cyber bullying; and also sexual bullying. IkamvaYouth learners were engaged on an educational game that dealt with the use of drugs and alcohol, and how it can affect your life, people around you and your body and mind.
Learners got an opportunity to ask questions pertaining to their lives or what they are currently facing. The ICS crew delivered in terms of reaching out to the IkamvaYouth learners, helping them in understanding what bullying is, the effects that it has; what drugs are and how they can destroy your life; what alcohol is, and how it can harm one’s life. They ran another workshop covering issues around HIV and AIDS and these workshops really made an impact on the Ikamvanites and we are grateful as IkamvaYouth Chesterville.
The Year Beyond programme has just had its very first successful winter school for 300 learners run by a group of 36 highly motivated volunteers. Winter school is a way of introducing our young learners to a wider world of opportunity through targeted career advice and mentoring activities, supplementary tutoring, excursions and workshops, and through career speakers offering advice and support to enable the learners to access tertiary education and employment.
Our winter schools were held at Phoenix, Manyano, ID Mkhize, and Oval North High Schools. We were hosted with warmth and the learners thoroughly enjoyed the experience. With the learners having never been to an established winter school programme, the experience unlocked their eyes and minds to a new sphere of possibilities.
Winter Schools are not like the daily routine of a normal school day, instead it’s about intensive tutoring and different workshops focussed on equipping the students with a sense of independence as well as ensuring that they leave with the confidence and understanding in mind, knowing that it starts with self. The activities and workshops were aligned with the intention of developing our learner’s leadership skills, level of awareness, valuing self and importantly raising awareness of the social issues affecting youth and the preventative actions that are available to them.
Tutoring
The core component of Year Beyond winter school is the academic content. Learners received 2 hour intensive tutoring sessions with a variety of tutoring resources including; past papers, mock exams and Answer Series study guides, English (Fundza) and Math (Olico) Fundamentals.
Workshops
In addition to the academic emphasis, the winter school provided an opportunity for a number of workshops around themes relating to general life-skills, HIV/Aids awareness, filmmaking and personal presentation skills. Learners were also exposed to information helpful to choosing subjects when they start grade 10.
The varied workshops included; Peers in Sexual Health running workshops about teenage pregnancy / STIs/ HIV information and training through experiential games and role plays; UCT Health Faculty who ran TB awareness and movie screening for health awareness; a workshop from Live Magazine on how to build a newsletter and magazine, while Rae Human and partners gave a presentation from the Film and Publication Board covering topics like cyber safety, the film industry and the Board as national regulator that were geared towards enlightening learners to the dangers of the media landscape. Students filmed their own short documentary through crash courses in sound, lighting and directing. UCT Humanities Faculty ran subject choice workshops and requirements to access post school institutions, and many learners went on an excursion to the Jewish Museum which aimed to create an understanding, gain knowledge and an appreciation of religious and cultural diversity within our society, and to respect the dignity, rights and values of people from different religions and cultures.
Combination of Schools
As the old adage goes; two hands are better than one and combining two schools per cluster was the winning idea. Manyano high school combined with Intlanganiso high school at Manyano and Tafelsig combined with Oval North at Oval North High. Additionally, Phoenix combined with Heideveld at Phoenix and ID Mkhize combined with Leiden high at ID Mkhize high school. At this point it’s where we could see the excitement on learners’ face when they were introduced to their peers from different schools. Peer to peer support was the tool that was used by tutors to ensure learners supported one another, but also in building a culture of hard work and being responsible to and for each other.
A huge thanks to all the workshop facilitators, tutors and learners – Your passion, commitment, excitement and leadership shown over this time has started to set a precedent in the schools, instilling a culture of hard work and belief in the possibility of a bright and beautiful future!
Ebonites welcomed Dr. Welcome Khubeka to grace Ebony Park branch with study skills and career guidance talk. Ebonites had a chance to experience Dr. Khubeka just like their brothers and sisters did in 2014. Dr. Khubeka has been faithful in giving IkamvaYouth Gauteng Branches (except Mamelodi Branch) motivational, career, and study skills talks.
Dr. Welcome talked about the following;
- How learners should manage their time, especial when it comes to their school work. He advised learners to make their own timetables which will guide them on how to study all their subjects which they are doing at school.
- He also urged learners to prioritise their school work over their other activities.
- He advised learners to reward themselves every time they achieve something.
- Choosing careers based on research and passion.
- Pursuing dreams and not giving up on what they want.
- Showing determination and hard work in their studies
A lot have benefited from his talks. In 2013, IkamvaYouth witnessed a high number of varsity placements and employment in Gauteng branches, it showed that such workshops were effective and prepared learners on their future endeavours. IkamvaYouth helps high school learners to improve their marks and get to varsity. The only way learners can choose their career path wisely is to involve professionals like Dr. Welcome and others like him to help them realize that their dreams are possible.
‘’Our engagement with the IkamvaYouth (Ivory Park and Ebony Park) branches is on how to assist learners to study in a creative way. Hence we believe that empowering them with the academic study skills at an early stage will contribute positively in their academic journey. The sessions which we offer to them cover critical study skills such as, time management, how to take notes, how to take examinations (focusing on analysing an assessment) and staying motivated during their studies’’, said Dr. Khubeka.
IkamvaYouth Ebony Park branch coordinator, Nyasha Zvomuya, mentioned that Dr. Khubeka’s talks have been good for the Ebonites, as many of them didn’t give us a hard time when choosing careers to pursue. We are grateful to partner with him and Gauteng branches will always open the door for Dr. Khubeka.
“It’s crucial for learners to take part in these workshops which help them to make career choices and gain effective study skills. We have witnessed how learners in lower grades react to such talks and presume It will be easy for them to make good career decisions once they reach grade 12”said Michael Thema (Branch Assistant, Ebony Park).
IkamvaYouth Gauteng branches will continue to inspire high school learners with such talks from professionals like Mr Khubeka.
Ivory Park grade 10 learners on the 7th of March 2014 benefited from a Study Skills Workshop facilitated by Dr. Welcome Kubeka of the University of Johannesburg. Dr. Kubeka has been running these workshops since 2012, focusing mainly on grade 10 learners with the notion of building motivating learners as they cruise through high school.
‘’Our engagement with the Ikamva Youth (Ivory Park and Ebony Park) branches is on how to assist learners to study in a creative way. Hence we believe that empowering them with the academic study skills at an early stage (Grade 10) will contribute positively in their academic journey. The sessions which we offer to them cover critical study skills such as, Time management, taking notes, taking examinations (focusing on analyzing an assessment) and staying being motivated during their studies’’, says Dr. Kubeka.
His commitment and involvement with IkamvaYouth learners has seen participating learners being exceptionally focused on their school work resulting in improved marks and discipline.
“The teachings by Dr. Kubeka are motivational and skill building. I hope he continues to have these workshops with us as we learn things we never imagined in studying”, Mesile Kuthumela , a grade 10 learner who attended the workshop.
We give much thanks to Dr. Welcome Kubeka for his selfless commitment to IkamvaYouth programmes and his input in developing our learners, equipping them with life skills for a better future.
Lloyd Lungu