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TEACH DESIGN TECHNOLOGY TO UNDERPRIVILEGED CHILDREN IN KNYSNA
Design Technology has always been an
important part of development and learning for children in the United
Kingdom. It enables children to become free thinking, creative and helps
them to actively use their imagination. Design Technology, in other
aspects, also enables children to break away from the usual text book
rituals which dominate so many classes in Africa.
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►SUMMARY
FACTFILE |
| Start Dates |
All year round (subject to school
terms) - you choose your
start and finish dates! |
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Duration |
From 2 weeks and up to 1 year, subject to visa
requirements |
| Requirements |
No qualifications needed, just a
good dose of enthusiasm! |
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Price |
From £845
/ US$1,270 for 2 weeks, ranging to £2,595 / US$3,895 for 12 weeks.
Full Price List and other
Currencies |
| What's included |
►Accommodation
►Food
►Meeting you at the Airport
►Transfer to your accommodation
►Full pre-departure support
►Local in-country team support
and backup
►24-hr emergency support
►Two free T-shirts
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What's not included |
Flights, Insurance,
Cost of Visas (if a visa is required, but we'll provide necessary documents and
assistance),
Return transfer to
airport. |
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Who can do this Project? |
All our projects are
open to all nationalities.
Unless otherwise stated, you need to be aged between 17 and 70+ |
On this page:
PROJECT OVERVIEW
Walk around the streets
anywhere in Africa, but especially in the townships, and you'll be overwhelmed
by the creative talent in the communities. From the Craftsmen who make cooking
pots from discarded oil drums on the road side, to souvenirs. If you look at the
shanty houses, you’ll be impressed by the initiative used in putting them
together.
Design Technology
was introduced into the school curriculum in South Africa back in 2000. It has
proven to be extremely popular amongst the children. The problem is that many of
the poorer township schools know little about the subject and are in desperate
need for people with design experience to come to their schools, bringing with
them their own ideas and hopefully help to nurture a new generation of design
thinkers in South Africa.
WHAT YOU'LL GAIN FROM DOING THIS PROJECT:
The enormous satisfaction of helping disadvantaged children and
knowing that you made a difference to them.
New skills, more confidence, a greater understanding
of a different culture, invaluable personal and professional
development.
An entry on your CV or résumé that will put you head
and shoulders above most others in the job market
And best of all ... an unforgettable experience!
You will probably be based at two schools
- Percy Mdala and Knysna High School. Knysna High has similar standards
to those in Western countries and you will work alongside the teachers at the school.
Working here is a good opportunity to gain a feel for the
subject and at the same time you will find the school extremely keen to learn as
much as possible about Design Technology as it is in
the UK or your home country.
For the second part of the placement you will spend your time
at the secondary school, Percy Mdala. Percy Mdala is a
Black Xhosa Township School. It is a lot poorer than Knysna high and lacks many
of the facilities and resources. Although you will have plenty of help and
support at the school, you will have to be a lot more independent and use
your own initiative and many of your ideas. Hopefully
you will be able transmit some ideas from Knysna High
to Percy Mdala.
This is an excellent placement for anyone studying or has
good knowledge of Design Technology. By helping the children have a greater
knowledge of the subject, you will find that the teachers will be extremely
grateful for the support and knowledge as, for them,
this is a subject the schools are still learning about.
LOCATION:
This teaching
programme is located in
the town of Knysna in the Cape
Province, on the Indian Ocean coast and within easy reach of the beautiful capital city of Cape
Town (see photo at bottom of page).
The seaside resort of
Plettenberg Bay is about 20-30 mins away
from Knysna. Both places are extremely beautiful and are favourite
holiday resorts for South Africans.
ABOUT THE
SCHOOLS:
The schools are mainly for the poorer
African and Coloured children in the local community. General facilities at the schools are somewhat limited although two of the schools have computer facilities and one school in particular would appreciate the help of volunteers with computer
experience!
Average class size is between 15 and 40. Standards
are generally very high, but in most of the schools we work with, materials and
resources may be scarce; however, working conditions are very good. The
enthusiasm of the students and colleagues more than
makes up for any hardships they may experience.
On your
first day of teaching you will be taken to one of the schools that we help and
introduced to the Principal, the teaching staff and pupils. You will be made
very welcome by all!
Your key
immediate contact will be the School Principal who may deal with your specific
programme personally. He or she will have been fully briefed by our staff but
will want to discuss your programme with you before any final decisions are
made. Some principals may also wish to discuss with you the possibility
of using any of your other interests or skills which
may be fun or useful for the children, and here your degree subject might well
be helpful and any interests, from hiking and wildlife to football, chess and
Western music, may be of great interest.
The Principal and/or relevant teachers at the school will liase with you about
your teaching assignments. South Africans generally are very friendly,
approachable and helpful and they will be delighted in your interest and your
enthusiasm.
You may find while
teaching that you will also be asked to help with English, especially with the
poorer schools. You will normally be asked to stand up in front of a class and
teach conversational English - you are not expected to be an expert on grammar
or literature. The important thing is to help people speak English. You may also
be asked to help with other subjects but this is optional and it is only if you
feel confident. What you are out there for, most importantly, is to help with
Design. If you are asked to help
with teaching English, the Teaching Suggestions Booklet which we provide
you with has ideas for teaching English and will also help structuring lessons
in other subjects. Video facilities are available in some schools and audio
equipment is quite commonplace.
You will most likely
teach in more than one school. Most of the schools are State schools, both
secondary and primary. You will generally be asked to help out with any age
groups. You are, in fact, very likely to be in popular demand everywhere - in
and out of the classroom.
You will have weekends free and this will also allow some time for travelling
and sight seeing.
Claire Baker taught at Sunridge Primary in Knysna, and this is how she
describes a typical day on her project (but please note that this is only one
school and that work in other schools may vary):
"A typical day on a
teaching placement in Knsyna, SA., starts at around 7.00
am. After my first week it was established that in a house shared with 3 other
girls, the earlier you get up, the more likely it is you will get in the shower!
At 8am we are picked up by Stan,
who drove us to and from school every day.
Within the school the volunteers do different
things in different year groups, from children aged around 6 to children aged 14
and it is up to you whether you wish to take a whole class (of around 45
children) on your own, or to work in the class with the teacher as more of an
assistant, or to take small groups of children. I chose to take groups of
children to work on the computers.
Lessons run from 8.15 in 45-minute
lessons up till 2.00 pm with
2 breaks in between.Break: every break we have a group of
children who come to see us, some are practicing dances and songs for a
performance two of the volunteers have organised, some are playing on the
computers, others just come for a big hug from all of the volunteers. Expect to
get hugs from just about every child you pass.
Volunteers have 3 breaks,
really, as there is a dedicated reading lesson lasting
around 20 minutes during which we are free to eat our lunch early
(by 11am we were usually very hungry).
There is a tuck shop but taking your own food is recommended as the
sweets and crisps on sale are not very nutritious – or tasty!12.00 is lunch
break: the children are provided with a peanut butter sandwich. 12.45 to 2.00 pm:
lessons continue until 2.00
pm but school often closes early for staff meetings and training.
When I left school [at the
end of the day, 2.00 p.m.] it was always through a huge crowd of children
all giving us huge hugs. The children are all very loving and you get hundreds
of hugs each day!
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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
OPTIONAL ADD-ONS
Read our What's Happening in
Knysna Diary
Return to
the Teaching Home Page
Volunteer Rachel Ley getting a hug |
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