When JumpStart tutors faced the delayed return to school due to Covid-19 the team turned the disappointment into an exciting opportunity. The extra time was a bonus. We chose to tutor our tutors in an expanded way. Programme Director, Jabu Thomo, planned a series of workshops over four days at various venues suitable for socially...
On World Education Day South African children should be polishing their school shoes and sharpening their pencils. Instead they await a delayed return to school. Today we give thanks to those who have gone the extra mile during the pandemic to minimise the effects of disrupted education. We join hands with the 1.6 billion students...
When Deputy Basic Education Minister Reginah Mhaule announced the delayed re-opening of schools last Friday, the JumpStart team was relieved and dismayed. We respond here with our plans for the year that now starts on 15 February:...
During 2020 Mrs Adelina Msimango shared her office and her heart with four JumpStart interns. As Head of Department (Intersen) at Sekgutlong Primary School she took care of the tutors of the JumpStart programme, which is funded by the Michael and Susan Dell Foundation. As the year draws to a close, she reflects on how...
Tumelo Mokoena is a tutor at Mohlodi Primary School, where he inspires a love of maths to learners in Grades 1,2 and 3. This 22-year-old says that teaching maths has greatly changed since he was in primary school. "Especially, if you consider lockdown learning, teaching via smartphones and devices!" As a tutor he is eager...
This Women's Month we feature some exceptional women in our community. The first of our August heroines is Barbara Bogogolela, who shared her experience of teaching Grade One under challenging circumstances. Back in January this year, Mrs Bogogolela stood on the long corridor outside her classroom door, leading the young Grade Ones into her class...
Once upon a time, when Simphiwe Mtshali was working in a health spa, where Women's Month meant doing lots of manicures and massages. This year, during Covid-19 lockdown, she has been massaging numbers and building children's futures online. From beauty therapist to maths tutor was a substantial career shift, but the journey continued in ways...
Early Childhood Development (ECD), entrepreneurship, and dreams of becoming a speech therapist motivate JumpStart success story, Siduduzile Mthembu. There’s nothing small about her educational ambitions, which took some time to get going. There's everything big about her determination to come back from hard times. Her life's focus now is her work as an educator, entrepreneurship,...
Given Msibi is a tutor with a fire for words. He observed and articulated the struggles of his colleagues and the learners in his care during lockdown. A drummer in his church band, Given takes every opportunity to stand up as a motivational speaker. Or did...
If every cloud has a silver lining, then most people living under lockdown can't see it easily. There are few bright spots when you have no work and a family to feed. Katlehong resident, Madintle Kubere, is an optimist however. With JumpStart's help she turned her lack of employment into a golden opportunity to learn...
