Staff Reporter

As this year draws to a close, the 2023 cohort of eight from the iSchoolAfrica Deaf Developers Programme have graduated. This programme emerges as a pioneering effort, inviting businesses to embark on a journey that not only addresses the pressing need for tech talent but also aims to create more inclusive work environments.

In a stride toward creating a more inclusive society and workforce, iSchoolAfrica, an innovative education initiative, has launched the transformative Deaf Developers Programme funded by a grant from SAB Foundation, as well as support and funding from Core Group. This pioneering initiative is poised to empower unemployed Deaf youth with cutting-edge skills in iOS app development, opening pathways to future income and success, while fostering inclusivity within our society.

Initiatives like the iSchoolAfrica Deaf Developers Programme carry immense significance. They break down barriers, empower individuals and foster workplaces where every person is valued and included.

In a landmark development, coinciding with the official recognition of South African Sign Language as the 12th official language in South Africa, the Deaf Developers Programme stands as a beacon of hope, bridging the gap between skills, opportunities and inclusivity.

The 2023 cohort of eight Deaf students immersed themselves in a comprehensive post-graduate certificate programme in app development, centred on Apple’s coding language, Swift.

The programme not only equips these young talents with the vital skills needed for app development but also cultivates their confidence and competence to thrive in the competitive tech industry.

Michelle Lissoos, Director of iSchoolAfrica, articulated her enthusiasm, stating, “The iSchoolAfrica team has designed the Deaf Developers Programme to transform the narrative of disabled youth unemployment in South Africa. We are often asked what success will look like for this programme. There are a few levels of success. There is a critical need for app developers with disabilities to be creating applications that will solve barriers faced by people with disabilities. We hope to see apps created by our students to serve this community. We also hope that they will thrive as developers in accessible workspaces – and that biases are broken down for the employment of future youth with disabilities. We know that their success will not only benefit the disabled community but society as a whole. And that this is the first of many cohorts the Deaf Developers Programme will enable.”

The Deaf Developers Programme is a meticulously crafted nine-month journey that encompasses various elements aimed at ensuring holistic learning and practical application. Each participant is provided with a MacBook for the duration of the programme, ensuring they have the tools to participate effectively in their learning journey.

This innovative programme employs a hybrid approach, seamlessly integrating South African Sign Language (SASL) interpreters, thereby ensuring clear and effective communication channels.

As a testament to their growth, participants are poised to tackle industry-related projects upon completion of the course, applying their newfound skills and gaining hands-on experience.

Through the programme it came to light that there were certain specific coding terms that were not part of South African Sign Language. An innovation of this programme included the contribution of more than 100 new coding terms to our sign language dictionary.

iSchoolAfrica Disability Inclusion Programme Manager, Chelsea Williamson underscored the significance of this initiative, affirming, “Inclusion is not just a word; it’s an imperative. The Deaf Developers Programme opens doors for Deaf individuals to shine, enabling them to contribute their talents to the tech ecosystem.”

Corporate Partnership Opportunities

A partnership with the iSchoolAfrica Deaf Developers Programme offers corporations various ways of collaborating, with numerous benefits. Besides corporates receiving associated BBBEE points and tax certificates – the programme paves the way for employers to contribute to their brand by leading the way in inclusion. There are different collaboration levels, from sponsoring coding at schools for learners with special needs, to bursaries for Deaf students to study app development, to tapping into this pipeline of highly qualified app developers. iSchoolAfrica offers comprehensive support to partner corporations, ensuring a seamless and inclusive transition for Deaf app developers in the workplace.

iSchoolAfrica invites corporates to be part of a ground-breaking initiative that addresses tech talent shortages and contributes to reducing unemployment rates among people with disabilities in South Africa.

For more information on the iSchoolAfrica Deaf Developers Programme and partnership opportunities, please contact Chelsea Williamson (iSchoolAfrica Disability Inclusion Programme Manager) on chelsea@ischoolafrica.com

INSIDE EDUCATION

Staff Reporter

Putting up brave fights on the international stage, the South African U-17 hockey teams represented the country with pride by delivering impressive performances throughout the Mirnawan Cup tournament in Malaysia.

The national U-17 boys’ team, under the guidance of head coach Justin Collins and captain Reuben Sendzul, were exceptional. In a nail-biting final, they lost in a narrow 4-3 defeat to India.

“Our journey in the Mirnawan Cup has been an incredible adventure. The competition was fierce and we gave our all. Despite the result, we’ve gained valuable insights and memories that will last a lifetime,” said Sendzul, who scored all three of his team’s goals in the final.

The SA girls’ team, led by head coach Omari Pienaar Geyer and captain Tanya Pieterse, also did well to finish fourth.

After beating India 2-1 in a thrilling contest earlier in the tournament, the girls’ side were edged 2-0 by the same team in another tightly-contested battle in the third-fourth place playoff.

“This was a tremendous learning experience. The opportunity to compete on a global stage has not only sharpened our skills but has been a source of immense pride,” said Pieterse.

The coaching staff and players from both teams expressed gratitude for the opportunity to participate at the Mirnawan Cup, which featured 11 teams from five countries.

The South African sides not only demonstrated their talent and potential on the field but also emphasized the importance of enjoying the game, and both head coaches stressed the significance of the players’ enjoyment and growth during the tour.

“Being part of this tournament was a great opportunity for our young players to showcase their talent and compete at an international level. The experience gained will undoubtedly contribute to their growth as athletes,” said Pienaar Geyer.

Collins echoed these sentiments, stating: “The Mirnawan Cup has provided a fantastic platform for our boys to learn, compete and enjoy the game. The resilience they displayed and the lessons learned will undoubtedly shape their future in hockey.”

Returning home this week, both teams carried with them not only the lessons learned on the field but also a sense of camaraderie and pride in representing South Africa on the world stage, and the experience gained by the players will undoubtedly contribute to the bright future of South African youth hockey.

An affiliate member of the South African Hockey Association (SAHA), the South African Schools Hockey Association (SASHOC) is a regulatory board which promotes, upholds, supports, controls, and maintains rules for all schoolgirls and schoolboys playing hockey in South Africa.

Laying the foundation in hockey development at schools’ level in South Africa and ensuring that there is opportunity to maintain the growth of the game, will ensure that Hockey will continue to grow from strength to strength.

SASHOC also firmly believes that transformation plays an important role in our organization achieving its goals.

INSIDE EDUCATION

Lerato Mbhiza

Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga says the ongoing final year matric exams have so far proceeded smoothly as more than 700,000 matric candidates sat for their exams this year in more than 8,000 exam centres across South Africa.

Motshekga was addressing the media on Sunday where she cautioned the Class of 20233 to desist from participating in parties to make the end of exams.

This sentiment has been reiterated by various other stakeholders, including political parties. 

The Gauteng Education Department has also urged matriculants to stay focused and refrain from taking part in these parties.

The department has also appealed to owners of liquor stores and taverns not to sell alcohol to learners.

The Inkatha Freedom Party in KwaZulu-Natal called on education MEC, Mbali Frazer to ban ‘pens down parties’.

IFP member of parliament Thembeni Madlopha said such parties have led to many unfortunate incidents.

In June 2022, 21 people died while attending a ‘pens down’ party at Enyobeni Tavern in East London.

Motshekga also touched on the issue of safety, urging communities to keep a close watch on schools over the December and January holidays.

“As a sector, we become very anxious when schools close for a long period. Schools get vandalised, and there are a lot of difficulties that we normally have. So, we want to again appeal to communities to take care of their schools.”  

 INSIDE EDUCATION 

Lerato Mbhiza

THE climate change literacy workshop kicked off on Wednesday at the Knightsbridge Office Park on the importance of raising awareness among educators and how they can help improve school literacy in South Africa.

Timothy Thomas, a manager at EPSON highlighted the importance of teaching the youth about climate change that has an impact in many communities worldwide. Recently floods in Pakistan affected more than 3 million people and in South Africa over 500 people have died in the April 2023 floods.

“Today is about what we can change as individuals on matters of climate change and finding better ways to inform the community and pupils,” he said. 

Sibusiso Masombuka the deputy principal at Greenside High School said schools have few challenges when it comes to teaching climate change literacy because most schools don’t have teachers who have knowledge on the subject. 

Masombuka also cited Life Orientation as one area where most schools are lacking in terms of qualified teachers to teach the subject.

“You will find that the teacher teaching the subject is a Maths teacher but took the subject because there was space that needed to be filled”. 

He suggested that schools and communities need to be creative and take education further by making programs that will educate the young and the old while calling out on Life Science and Geography teachers to give more information to the community and pupils. 

“We need to educate more people .. also teaching takes place in different places not only in schools. We can get parents involved in spreading information on how to take care of the environment”.  

Saray Khumalo, a mountaineer told the panel that climate change is being caused by human behaviour and can be reversed by human behaviour. She said that through the right partnership with the department of education and different companies – the schools could be assisted to benefit with resources.

“With the right partnership the school can get resources and be able to spread the message in different areas …teaching people about climate change  and what can be done to stop it.  Also checking the type of plastic that is used in schools, the eco-friendly plastic needs to be used more in schools to help pupils to understand  more on climate change” 

Sindili Cloeter from WESSA said teaching climate literacy to pupils is a big challenge as some schools lack resources and teachers have to carry all this pressure to teach and make sure the word reaches the parents and community. 

Cloeter added that it has been proven that indigenous knowledge could also be used to stop climate change.

INSIDE EDUCATION 

Johnathan Paoli

Civil society organisations, including Equal Education, Section27, The Bookery and Right2Protest, on Wednesday called on the Minister of Basic Education Angie Motshekga to urgently fulfil the legal obligations set out in the Norms and Standards for Public School infrastructure, which she signed into law 10 years ago.

29 November 2023 marks 10 years since the Norms & Standards for Public School Infrastructure was published.

“This letter expresses our concern and disappointment that despite it being 10 years since the promulgation of the Regulations relating to Minimum Uniform Norms & Standards for Public School Infrastructure, many schools’ infrastructure conditions have not improved,” the letter read.

EE said that despite this important law, the government continued to struggle to ensure all learners have access to quality schooling, leaving many school communities to contend with deplorable infrastructure conditions.

Earlier this month, Equal Education released a 48-page report under the title “Schooling under Unusual Conditions: Research into how school infrastructure shapes teaching and learning in SA”.

The report sought to examine the relationship between infrastructure and teaching and learning, using a nationally representative sample of individuals aged 20 and younger and drawn from the 2019 General Household Survey.

The report found that a review of the empirical literature showed that the physical conditions of schools, including classroom size, affect schooling outcomes, although the impact varies widely across contexts.

The report said that nearly three decades into democracy, the post-apartheid government was still struggling to undo the inequalities in the schooling system that were created by the apartheid regime.

The report continued that the quality of schooling was compromised because pupils were not gaining enough of the basic skills and knowledge needed for further education or to lead productive lives.

“Generally, insufficient classroom infrastructure or overcrowding conditions (measured as classes too big/too many learners) emerged as a consistent and important environmental factor at the school level, with a negative impact on motivation for both learners and teachers,” the report read.

Equal Education said the Department of Basic Education committed to replacing all schools constructed from inappropriate materials, including mud, asbestos, zinc, and wood, and to provide schools with electricity, running water, and proper sanitation facilities by 2016.

Sufficient resources including classrooms, electricity, running water, and functional toilet facilities, in order to supply schools with electronic connectivity (telephones and the internet) and perimeter security (fences) by November 2020 as well as providing schools with labs and libraries by November 2023.

The civic organisations expressed their deep concern over school infrastructure backlogs, especially sanitation backlogs, despite focused interventions like the Accelerated School Infrastructure Delivery Initiative (ASIDI) and the Sanitation Appropriate for Education (SAFE) initiative.

EE held that 728 schools across the Eastern Cape, Limpopo and KwaZulu-Natal still relied on pit toilets as their only form of sanitation and that education departments have consistently missed key targets, including those for libraries and laboratories by 2023, as well as those set for 2020 and 2016.

The organisation said that 82% of schools do not have a laboratory, while 74% of public schools lack a library, and the ones that do have libraries are often inadequately stocked, in a country where 81% of children cannot read for meaning in any language by the age of ten.

“The consistent failures to meet the deadlines in the regulations not only represent missed opportunities to address the historic backlogs endangering the lives and future of learners but also missed chances to improve learning outcomes in the sector,” the open letter read.

EE said that although they recognised that lack of funding has been cited as the reason for the provincial and national departments of basic education’s failure to achieve targets and plans, particularly regarding school infrastructure, the sector needed to take responsibility for its spending problem that leads to poor service delivery.

“Even though funding for basic education is insufficient to address the numerous issues, both national and provincial education departments are notorious for irregular, wasteful, and fruitless spending,” the letter read.

In addition, the organisation said that before the discontinuation of the National Education Infrastructure Management System (NEIMS) reports, public data on infrastructure backlogs was frequently inconsistent with current realities, and that it not only hindered civil society’s ability to hold education officials accountable but suggests that departments do not know the true extent of the crisis they are meant to address.

EE further said that adequate school infrastructure was a critical component of the full enjoyment of the right to basic education, an immediately realisable right that requires proactive measures for its progressive realisation.

“Persistent infrastructure backlogs not only infringe on learners’ constitutional right to basic schooling; they threaten the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goal 4 target of ‘free, equitable and quality primary and secondary education for all girls and boys leading to relevant and effective learning outcomes by 2030’,” the letter concluded.

Apart from realising the targets of the Norms, the open letter also called for the national and provincial Treasuries to prioritise and provide adequate infrastructure funding, as well as for the DBE to conduct a thorough audit of schools to ascertain the true extent of the infrastructure crisis.

INSIDE EDUCATION

Lerato Mbhiza

Higher Education Minister, Blade Nzimande, has laid a criminal complaint against businessman Thuja Holdings CEO Mthunzi Mdwaba, at the Brooklyn Police Station for his failure to report corruption to law enforcement authorities.

This is in relation to the allegations that Mdwaba made earlier this month against Nzimande and two ministers who allegedly attempted to solicit a bribe of R500 million from him.

Mdwaba alleged that Nzimande, Employment and Labour Minister Thulas Nxesi, Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana, and the ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula were among those who sought to bribe him to give the green light to his R5 billion seed funding from the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF).

All the ministers and Mbalula have denied the allegations and threatened legal action against Mdwaba if he did not issue a statement of apology.

Addressing the media outside the police station, Nzimande described Mdwaba’s allegations as a blue lie.

“I have come here to open a criminal case against Mthunzi Mdwaba, who has come up with allegations that I and a few of my other colleagues asked for a bribe from him. This is a lie, a blue lie, actually; there is no such thing, and I never sent anyone,” Nzimande said.

According to Nzimande, when Mdwaba’s team asked him why he didn’t open a case against the implicated ministers, he responded that he didn’t trust the law enforcement agencies.

Nzimande said this was very strange for someone who claimed to be a lawyer, a professor, as well as a businessman and called Mdwaba’s allegations a smear campaign against him, the ANC, and the South African Communist Party (SACP).

“This has the potential to damage my image as a political person. We are going to elections. I don’t want this to be hanging over my head. This is a smear campaign against me, the ANC as government and the SACP. He is doing it deliberately. He has never come to me… to ask for money. This is very strange,” Nzimande charged and also denied that he had ever worked with Mdwaba.

“We might have bumped into each other in forums or other activities, but I have no relationship with the guy,” Nzimande said.

INSIDE EDUCATION 

Six teenagers go on trial Monday in Paris for their alleged roles in the beheading of a teacher who showed caricatures of the prophet of Islam to his class, a killing that led authorities to reaffirm France’s cherished rights of expression and secularism.

Samuel Paty, a history and geography teacher, was killed on Oct. 16, 2020, near his school in a northwest Paris suburb by an 18-year-old of Chechen origin who had become radicalized. The attacker was in turn shot dead by police.

Paty’s name was disclosed on social media after a class debate on free expression during which he showed caricatures published by the satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo, which triggered a newsroom massacre by extremists in January 2015.

The defendants arrived Monday morning at the Paris court, their faces hidden behind masks and hoods, accompanied by their families. The media are not allowed to disclose their identity.

Among those going on trial, a teenage girl, who was 13 at the time, is accused of making false allegations for wrongly saying that Paty had asked Muslim students to raise their hands and leave the classroom before he showed the cartoons. She later told investigators she had lied. She was not in the classroom that day and Paty did not make such a request, the investigation has shown.

Five other students of Paty’s school, then 14 and 15, are facing charges of criminal conspiracy with the aim of preparing aggravated violence to be committed.

They are accused of having waited for Paty for several hours until he left the school and of having identified him to the killer in exchange for promises of payments of 300-350 euros ($348-$406).

The investigation established that the attacker knew the name of the teacher and the address of his school, but he did not have the means to identify him.

The lawyer for one of the defendants, Antoine Ory, said his client is “tormented by remorse and very much afraid of the confrontation with Mr. Paty’s family.” He said the teenager ”obviously didn’t know about the criminal plan” of the killer, Abdoullakh Anzorov, a Moscow-born Chechen refugee.

Ory said his client since then had “difficult” times, changed school and friends and now sees the trial as an opportunity to turn the page.

All six teenagers are facing 2 1/2-year in prison. The trial is scheduled to end on Dec. 8.

Louis Cailliez, the lawyer for Paty’s sister, Mickaëlle, said she wants “to understand the real causes” that led the students to commit something irreparable. He pointed to the “fatal combination of little acts of cowardice, big lies, calumnies, arrangements, complicity and help without which Samuel Paty would still be alive.”

“Without the denunciation, there would be no visibility (on the social media), without visibility, there would be no crime,” he said.

Eight other adults are to be sent to trial later. They include the father of the teenage girl charged with false allegations. At the time, he had posted videos on social media that called for mobilization against the teacher.

A radical Islamic activist who helped him disseminate the virulent messages naming Paty has also been charged.

The trial comes six weeks after a teacher was fatally stabbed and three other people injured in a school attack by a former student suspected of Islamic radicalization. The killing in a context of global tensions over the Israel-Hamas war led French authorities to deploy 7,000 additional soldiers across the country to bolster security and vigilance.

AP

Inside Education Reporter

South Africa is facing three key challenges: energy shortages, water scarcity, and the lack of skills in digitalisation. 

To address this triple challenge, the African Rainbow Minerals (ARM), has sponsored a Postdoctoral Fellowship Programme to support research into water, energy and digitalisation in the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment at the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits).

The collaboration between African Rainbow Minerals (“ARM”) and the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment at Wits University aims to develop the high-level skills required to address these issues. Energy

Dr Patrice Motsepe, Founder and Executive Chairman of African Rainbow Minerals (ARM), a Wits University alumnus and recipient of an honorary doctorate degree, said: “ARM is proud to partner with Wits University which is a globally respected academic institution. 

“Partnering with South African institutions of higher learning is paramount in our pursuit of knowledge, innovation, skills, and sustainable development. Public-private partnerships are crucial in addressing the socio-economic and environmental challenges confronting our communities and country. 

“ARM works with several top universities across South Africa, supporting young people from undergraduate to postgraduate studies, helping them to realise their dreams. Some of these students come from communities neighbouring our mining operations. 

“We also contribute to the development and upliftment of poor rural and urban communities in South Africa by educating students from these communities.”

The ARM Postgraduate Fellowship Programme at Wits University aims to develop and sharpen a critical mass of skills in South Africa through supporting a new cohort of postdoctoral fellows who will specialise in Water Resource Management, Digitalisation, and work towards a Just Energy Transition. ARM will sponsor a R20 million endowment, which will be invested in perpetuity. 

“We recognise the importance of digital transformation in the mining industry, and the necessity to develop the critical skills needed to advance our economy,” says Prof. Zeblon Vilakazi (FRS), Vice-Chancellor and Principal of Wits University. 

“This investment is firmly located in the Wits University Mining Precinct and dovetails with our broader initiatives in quantum computing, fintech and innovation. We are confident that through more private sector partnerships like the ARM Postgraduate Fellowship Programme, Wits University can help make a real difference in developing the critical skills and research needed to secure the long-term sustainability of the mining industry.”

Prof. Thokozani Majozi, the Dean of the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment adds: “The Faculty recognises the urgency of transitioning to a more sustainable and just energy system. Research and promotion of accessible, affordable, and socio-economically just renewable energy solutions are our top priorities. 

“Water is a critical resource, and we aim to contribute to the sustainable management of water resources through research, education, increased awareness and community engagement. This includes addressing challenges related to water scarcity, pollution, and climate change.”

Phillip Tobias, Chief Executive Officer of ARM said: “The ARM Postdoctoral Fellowship Programme is a testament to our commitment to addressing critical challenges in water, energy, and digitalisation facing our business and the country as a whole. 

“This initiative is about creating a pipeline of future critical skills that will cater for future business needs. We believe that through this collaboration, we can make a significant impact and leave a lasting legacy that will provide innovative and sustainable solutions that will benefit not only the mining industry but broader South African society as well.” 

INSIDE EDUCATION

Staff Reporter

SAP reaffirmed its commitment to youth skills in South Africa by profiling its SAP Educate to Employ initiative, and public-private partnership with UNICEF and government at an event in Johannesburg recently.

The event showcased the SAP Educate to Employ initiative which aims to educate youth aged 16–24 years on soft skills, foundational knowledge and SAP skills using the student zone on the SAP Learning site, where students can learn about the latest SAP solutions for free to kickstart their career. 

The initiative forms part of SAP’s global commitment to supporting UNICEF’s Generation Unlimited (GenU), a public-private-youth-partnership that aims to deliver innovative solutions to challenges youth face around the world. 

In the region, the partnership is aimed at helping young people in Nigeria, Kenya and South Africa gain skills for employment, with 100 youth forming part of the initial intake in South Africa.

“Skilling our youth to meaningfully participate in the digital economy is essential to an equality-centric and prosperous nation. We welcome SAP’s continued investment into skills development for the youth and extend our congratulations to UNICEF and SAP on their partnership. 

“The South African government is encouraged by the initiative, and we look forward to supporting efforts to scale the SAP Educate to Employ initiative,” said Pinky Kekana, Deputy Minister in The Presidency for Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation

The admission of the first 100 participants was announced at the event, a competitive set of students selected from a pool of 18,000 applicants across the continent who will receive fully remote learning over a six- to twelve-month period, with the aim of joining the SAP ecosystem as a young professional upon completion of the course. 

Anele Chulayo, an SAP Educate to Employ candidate, commented: “I have been passionate about coding since high school and the possibility of creating apps and technology that can make a difference to young people from all walks of life. 

“I applied for SAP Educate to Employ in August this year and am delighted to have been selected as part of their programme.  The programme is already underway and I’m excited to be learning new things every day including programming language and web development.  

“I believe in the power of technology to do good and make a positive impact and difference in people’s lives, regardless of background.”

Kholiwe Makhohliso, Managing Director at SAP Southern Africa, said: “Upskilling and mobilising Africa’s youth population is one of the defining challenges of our time. To build a prosperous future for all, we must urgently address one of South Africa and the continent’s greatest challenges – youth unemployment – which affects a disproportionate number of African youths. 

“We are proud to introduce a new Corporate Social Responsibility initiative – SAP Educate to Employ in South Africa as a demand-driven job creation initiative that empowers youth with vital skills, knowledge, attitudes and values to build their competencies for the 21st century digital economy.”

The initiative builds on SAP’s other extensive youth skills development initiatives throughout Africa, including Africa Code Week, which has trained nearly 14 million African youth in basic coding skills, and SAP Young Professional Program, which has equipped nearly 2000 youth in Africa with work-ready SAP skills and certification as well as direct job placements.

SAP and UNICEF first joined forces in support of GenU in 2019 launching in India, Turkey and Vietnam. The partnership was further extended in 2022 with a $4.55 million over three years investment focused on impacting youth in Kenya, Nigeria, the Philippines and South Africa and has since generated opportunities for over 7.6 million adolescents through inclusive and innovative skills development programs. 

The initiative launched in South Africa at a time when youth unemployment is at a peak. More than half of South Africa’s youth are currently unemployed. Without concerted effort by public- and private-sector role-players, South Africa will not reap the benefits of its substantial youth skills pool.

Christine Muhigana, UNICEF Representative in South Africa, says: “To remain competitive in a dynamic and changing job market, youth need access to work-relevant skills and training opportunities. 

“Through our partnership with SAP and working closely with key public sector role-players, we believe that this initiative can potentially make a lasting positive impact on youth job prospects in South Africa and beyond.”

INSIDE EDUCATION