Ambassador Stories

The definition of caring

One of the biggest lessons I learned during the past year as a TEACH Ambassador was the importance of sharing TEACH South Africa’s mission, and my experiences, with family, friends and acquaintances.

Being an ambassador at Siphamadla High School

I always wanted to be part of the social involvement programme at Rhodes University, which entailed teaching mathematics and physics at local high schools in Grahamstown, but never actually got the time to give it the full attention it deserved.

I still remember the day (in 2009) that I saw a TEACH South Africa advert outside the dining hall at the Steve Biko building on campus, which prompted anyone interested to write down their name and email address. Soon after that I received an email directing me to the TEACH South Africa website, where I submitted my application. At the time I was assisting a group of grade 12 learners with maths and physics after my lectures, and enjoying it very much. I formed an idea of doing this on a full-time basis, so when I saw the advert, I thought, “This is it.”

Sizolwenkosi Ndlovu’s chess club experience

As the chess coach at Fumana Comprehensive School, I am honoured to have encouraged my learners to choose chess as a sport. You should see their faces light up during a chess game and how determined they were to win.

On July 24, seven members of the Fumana Chess club participated in a chess tournament at Houghton Primary School in Houghton. The purpose was to serve as open trials for the South African Junior National Championships in Port Elizabeth in December 2011.

Brandon Raubenheimer leads through teaching

My name is Brandon Raubenheimer, I am 25 years old and I’m a TEACH Ambassador. I teach English at a school called Fumana Comprehensive in Katlehong on the East Rand of Johannesburg where I try to make a difference in the lives of the children.

As a TEACH Ambassador you are required to do a project that involves the learners, teachers and the community as a whole. I chose to start a soccer tournament during class breaks which kicked off in the last week of July 2010 after the very exciting World Cup. The learners usually spend their breaks just sitting in the sun, so the tournament provided them with an enjoyable and positively interactive alternative to boredom.

Meet TEACH Ambassador Meurial Magaya

Meurial Magaya holds an MSc in Geophysics. As a TEACH Ambassador for 2009, she was placed at Erasmus Monareng Secondary School on the East Rand, Johannesburg, teaching Physical Science to Grade 11 learners.

Upon her arrival at the school, Meurial was faced with the challenge of providing practical lessons within an under-resourced and under-utilised science laboratory. In trying to bridge the gap between practical and theoretical learning, Meurial offered her extra time to learners. Her dedication and determination resulted in a high pass rate from her learners in that year. She was asked to teach Grade 12s in 2010 because of the positive impact she had.