We now have a name - The Little Red Teapot!

The Save Our Schools and Community (SOSAC) early childhood development centre (ECDC) was established in 2012 on the premises of the Adolph Schauder Primary School in Shauderville, Port Elizabeth. 

It was recently renamed as The Little Red Teapot crèche. 


Research on childhood development has proven that the ages of 0 – 5 are critical for setting the neurological and physiological foundations for the development of human beings.   



The Little Red Teapot provides excellent early childhood care in a community with deep socio-economic challenges.

In 2013 the crèche enrolled 29 children between age 4-5. 

They majority are Afrikaans speaking from Schauderville and surrounds, a minority are Xhosa-speaking from New Brighton township. 

The medium of instruction is English.

 

Highlights of the Year

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The day's theme was RED!

 Ice cream outing!

Getting ready for the end of year concert.

The Role of Unions in Education Transformation

Our advocacy and projects coordinator Nomalanga Mkhize participated in Kagiso Trust's Education Conversations in Johanesburg 2012.

She engaged with department officials and the South African Democratic Teachers Union on the role of unions in education .

Excerpt:
Feisty community activist, Nomalanga Mkhize, coordinator of the Save our Schools and Community initiative in Grahamstown, Eastern Cape, said that there is a disconnect between unions and government which is crippling decision-making at schools. While unity is declared at the top levels of union and education structures, local and district level education is riven by divided loyalties and a poor understanding of correct processes and procedures.

Read more here: http://www.educationconversations.co.za/education-conversations-the-role-of-unions-in-education-transformation/

"Remove tenders from education" - [Article]

Remove tenders from education, says activist

Thu, 6 Sep, 2012

Jabulani Mkhize

“We as black people have decided that education is the privilege of those who can buy it; we have chosen to preserve an education system that kept black people oppressed,” said local education activist Nomalanga Mkhize.
She believes that education in South Africa is monopolised by the wealthy minority while the majority, mostly black people, are still being given an inferior education.
Talking at a recent lecture organised by the Rhodes University ANCYL branch in conjunction with the Sarah Baartman municipality (formerly Cacadu), Mkhize also insisted that free education does not imply revolutionary education and called for the removal of the tenders from the education system to improve it.
“The reason why we are in this crisis is because there are people who make money from it,” she said.

Access the full article at www.grocotts.co.za http://www.grocotts.co.za/content/remove-tenders-education-says-activist-06-09-2012

[Opinion] Declaring Teaching an Essential Service is Reactionary

Our coordinator Nomalanga Mkhize recently wrote an article for YouthLab, a think tank for young South Africans who are forging new political and intellectual paths in our democracy.

The article argues that declaring teaching an essential service will do nothing to solve the problems in the education system and only has the effect of disenfranchising good teachers because of the unprofessional behaviour of their peers.

You can follow YouthLab on Twitter @YouthLabZA or visit their website http://www.youthlab.org.za

Read the excerpt below and click on it to read the whole article on the YouthLab website:

There’s this saying that desperate times call for desperate measures.

But there are times when desperate measures are just desperate. This is how I see the African National Congress’ (ANC) reported warming up to the idea of declaring teaching an essential service. On what grounds is this decision being made? What evidence is there that limiting teachers’ right to strike is going to solve the dysfunctions in the South African education system?

Visitors from St. Olaf College, Minnesota

Our ECD was visited by students from St Olaf College in the United States.

Read their write up here St Olaf Visit

St. Olaf College students visit Schauderville, Port Elizabeth, January 2013

 pic: courtesy St Olaf

"WHERE ARE OUR TEACHERS?" Unpacking the teacher shortage in the Eastern Cape - Video by Rhodes Journalism Students

"Where are our teachers?" A video by Jillian Penaluna and Katja Schreiber.
Our coordinator Nomalanga Mkhize is featured in the video highlighting the more complex
aspects of the teacher distribution model.
You can click here for a direct link to Youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7OvMRPLKq0E&feature=youtu.be