Subject: TABSA – Mthatha, Eastern Cape Province, South Africa:
From: Yunus Peer – Director
Colleagues, June 28th – 2011 Ashley is a Math subject adviser from Port Elizabeth, one of the largest of the 23 districts in the Eastern Cape. He is here at TRINSET, an arm of the EC Educational Leadership Institute with 45 colleagues from all the provincial districts to attend a week-long workshop with the Hawaii-based volunteer group Teachers Across Borders South Africa. Each subject adviser is responsible for overseeing an average of 200 schools, an overwhelming task. TABSA 2011 is represented by faculty from 8 different public and private Hawaii schools, and Siyapambili High, a South African rural school.
We are in the 2nd day of the workshops. Breakfast was at 7am, we ended at 4pm this afternoon. The subject advisers met till 6pm. Discussions between the TABSA team and our SA colleagues continued through dinner. It is now approaching 9pm, and 4 teachers of the Hawaii team just returned from the classroom, prepared for the morning. They knew this would be hard work and they are loving it!
That everyone in the classroom is so engaged, so much discussion, so many notes, equations, diagrams on the board, groups working together, laughter, loud disagreement, loud agreement…as somebody said…”now this is a workshop !! “
Today, the Hawaii team knows why they came to South Africa – sharing knowledge with teachers who want to help their colleagues and their students. And we learn too, about teaching, living, and about our bond as colleagues and global citizens – personal and professional development!
Ashley will return in Week 3 with 4 lead teachers from his district, as will 45 of his colleagues from the other 22 districts. Should be quite a crowd! On his way out of the dining hall Ashley said…
“Yunus, like last year, you have one damn good team this year too! “
I know I do.
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Subject: TABSA – Week 2
Aloha Colleagues,
Our Hawaii team of Teachers Across Borders South Africa is now in the 2nd week of math and science workshops in the Eastern Cape Province.
We spent last weekend at Buccaneers Backpackers in Cintsa, just outside East London where the team got to spend some down time after an intense, exhausting and exhilarating first week with 46 math and science subject advisers from the entire province. Buccaneers turned out to be both a recreational and educational experience. The Price Family runs the place. They are very involved in the local rural schools, are huge environmentalists, and keep the business going through eco-tourism. TABSA agreed to help them in their efforts. We were all invited for dinner at the family home and 20 of us spent the evening learning and discussing how we might make a bigger difference for the rural poor. They run a volunteer teacher program volunteerafrica.co.za and support various pre-school programs to give children a chance at an education.
Today is Weds, July 6th, and the science team (Paul Heimerdinger, Angela Costanzo, Michelle Buck, and Ed DaSilva) are busy working with 40 teachers from the Libode District. At lunch, I witnessed Ed’s amazement when he learned that his Libode colleague had 87 learners in one of his science classes, his other 4 classes had an average of 70 per class. That would be about 3-4 students per desk in each Punahou classroom. Yet, there was not a trace of disappointment or sadness when he described the conditions. To the contrary, he was very hopeful – hopeful that what he learned in the workshop would allow him to reach and inspire more ‘learners’ in his science class.
Jim Metz, Frank Lau, Laurie Schafer and Thokozane Mteshane (TABSA Math) are traveling this week. Yesterday they worked at Mgeswa Junior Secondary School where learners from 3 different schools gathered to attend the TABSA math classes for Grade 9. Frank Lau had 96 students in his class – the others had similar numbers in their classes for the day, almost 300 in all. Today, they are in Flagstaff and in Thabankulu tomorrow, again with similar numbers. Thokozane said the respect, attention, and engagement shown by local students for the TABSA classes was outstanding! And their only complaint (in the bitter cold) was that we couldn’t be there with them every day throughout their vacation.
It is this thirst for learning that is so humbling for us. That students and teachers would gladly give up their holidays, travel in freezing temperatures, and spend their time in a classroom with teachers from the opposite side of the world – to LEARN ! . It is what teachers do. We learn and we teach, and we learn more from our colleagues and students too. And I am grateful to my Hawai’i team for the Aloha, and the knowledge they are sharing and gaining with teachers and students in South Africa. In our global village, this is personal and professional development at its finest!
Aloha from Mthatha, South Africa,
Yunus.
Subject: TAB – South Africa – Week 3
Aloha Colleagues,
Thursday, July 14, 2011
The Hawai’i TABSA team had an emotionally exhausting day today. We are nearing the end of a three week journey in helping to build the future of South Africa in our own small way. This week (July 11-15) 215 teachers from all 23 districts of the Eastern Cape are here with their math and science subject advisers(46). TABSA members are team teaching with the subject advisers in classes of 40. The teachers are from rural schools. Conditions vary depending on how rural the school is ; most have running water and electricity, most are poorly equipped, many lack qualified math and science teachers, and the average class size is 60.
At the end of one math session yesterday, Frank Lau (HBA) announced that he would be offering a session on “Probability” in Room 1 at 4 pm. At this hour of a winter afternoon, following 5 hours of class, I thought Frank was pushing a little too hard and if 10 brave teachers showed up, he would be lucky. An hour beyond his afternoon session, Ed DaSilva (MHS) was still working on balancing chemical equations with a group of teachers. Michelle Buck (KS) was helping prepare labs with Angela Costanzo (HPU) and Paul Heimerdinger (Iolani) while Jim Metz (KCC) and Laurie Schafer (Kea’au HS) were with Frank – in case more than 10 teachers showed up for the Probability class. Thokozane (SHS – RSA), my TABSA administrative assistant, was monitoring us all. The commuters who live within a 40km radius, were hitching rides home or waiting for a taxi (12 passenger minivans that carry at least 16-20). I stopped in to see Fuzile my DOE (RSA) colleague who was trying to secure a DJ for a party after dinner. The campus was buzzing with activity as the winter sun set.
Meanwhile, Paul Heimerdinger was guarding his cardboard boxes that are critical to his wonderful lesson on Electricity. In the first week of workshops, Paul was horrified when he learned that the custodian had thrashed and burned his boxes because he thought they were rubbish! The lesson on Electricity is a house wiring project using Christmas tree lights, telephone wire, paper clips, brass fasteners, and a D cell battery. A box is divided into a four-room house, with each room having a light switch, and the 4th room with a 2-way switch. In rural South Africa, such a lesson has implications well beyond the classroom for many of the teachers. And Paul does a great job with the theoretical side, with simple, concise handouts that exceed the National Curriculum Standards.
Angela and Michelle used corn meal to make fossils, imprints of leaves, and twigs. Michelle wrote a song on the Scientific Method and one on Pi for math, both accompanied by music on her ukulele. Everyone LOVED it! Food coloring, cabbage juice, plastic bottles, paper cups and other readily available household products made up their chemistry lab. “Yunus, these Hawaii teachers have helped us a LOT!…they have shown us that we can DO science in our rural schools. We don’t have to have labs!” This was a common refrain for all 3 weeks of the workshops.
The party came together tonight at 8pm. Since many teachers have to leave in arranged transport, and some have to travel 6 hours to get home, we will end the workshops before noon tomorrow. The speeches began before the music. Some of the speeches were biblical in nature, others were personal,
Jim brought out the tears when he said, “South Africa is a beautiful country, amazing beaches, cities, nature….and by far, the most beautiful thing about South Africa is its people…all of you… in this room. “
Ashley, the math subject adviser from Grahamstown, said “ Ladies and Gentlemen, I want to thank Yunus and his TABSA team from Hawai’i. We have ALL moved forward this week, personally and professionally. It makes sense … on a keyboard, when you press TAB , you move FORWARD…”
At 10 p.m., somebody decided to be an adult and stopped the music and dancing. Breakfast is at 7 a.m. with an 8:30 a.m. start time for classes on closing Friday.
It has been a life-altering experience for all of us from Hawaii. We worked with 300 teachers and 500+ grade 9 students in these past 3 weeks. It has been an emotionally exhausting journey. We know we made a difference. Frank Lau had to move more chairs into his room for his “Probability” class as the room was packed with 65 teachers! For me, these teachers redefine “commitment, hope, and determination. “ I am blessed to be a part of this project and I am thankful to our donors and supporters who make this all possible!
Aloha from South Africa,
Yunus