Education in Wentworth: Day-to-Day at Assegai Primary School

Definition of the word "assegai" as per the Oxford University Press's Dictionary of South African English:

"a spear, either short, for stabbing, as introduced by Shaka for the Zulu armies, or long, for throwing, usually with an iron blade: used from earliest times by Africans, both in hunting and war."

Although Assegai Primary School on Austerville Drive in Wentworth shares the name of this traditional Zulu weapon, it has nothing to do with wars or violence.  However, "Assegai" is the perfect name for this primary school of about 1200 "learners", as students are called in South Africa, because this government-run (equivalent to "public school" in the U.S.) school is fighting and struggling for a better education for the children of its community.

While working at Assegai, I have been pleasantly surprised and thrilled at the multitude of hospitality and warmth I have received from the children who rush up to hug me on a daily basis, even after a month and a half of working here, and the teachers who welcome me into their classrooms and their lives. 

While the children often become rowdy or do not listen to their teacher, I am continuously amazed by the love these children show so openly toward me.  During my first day at school, I had taken two steps out of a classroom when a young girl came up and hugged me.  I was then immobilized for the next ten minutes as one child after another came up to me, said hello and hugged me before heading off to their next class.  This was an experience that took my breath away; each day, as I am greeted by numerous children and teachers, I feel truly loved and am very happy to be able to interact with so many of Wentworth's children and teachers on a daily basis.  Working at Assegai has been a thrill, despite challenging at times, because I have not only been given the opportunity to interact and play with children, but also work with them in an educational setting in which I hope to leave a lasting effect on these kids' learning.

During a typical week at Assegai, I spend my time during the school days with the grade 4 students (for the first three weeks) and the grade 5 students (for my last two weeks after the school's 3-week winter holiday).  I help the students with their math and English work, assist the teachers with other tasks in the classroom, read stories to the class, and substitute teach when a teacher is absent.  After school, I run three different programs throughout the week:  On Mondays, Thursdays, and Fridays, I run a Literacy Workshop with the Grade 7s during which we practice reading aloud, answering reading comprehension questions, and going over new vocabulary words that we come across in our reading.  Many grade 7 students' reading levels are well below what they should be which becomes an even bigger problem when these students leave primary school (grades R to 7) and fall even further behind upon entering secondary school (grades 8 to 12).  On Tuesdays, I run an Arts Club for grade 3 students in which I teach the children to draw, paint, and do other crafts such as making paper snowflakes and gift bags.  Lastly, on Wednesdays, I run a Soccer Club for grade 7 girls during which we practice different soccer skills through drills, and use those techniques during scrimmage games.  For much of the year there is a boys soccer team, but no team for the girls.  For at least the two months I am here, I strive to give the girls an opportunity to also exercise and play soccer, and hopefully motivate them to pursue the establishment of a longer-lasting girls team in the future.

The children in my classes are very curious about America, and the questions they ask are quite entertaining.  The top things the children want to know about include questions about whether I have ever met any celebrities, which I sadly have to respond "no" to.  The most frequent requests are about Justin Bieber, Nicki Minaj, and Beyoncé.  I have also received requests that I sing the American national anthem for them; I did have my solo as I sang the anthem for a grade 6 classroom, and was pleasantly surprised as the entire class then sang the South African national anthem for me in return.  The children are also fascinated by the look and feel of American dollar bills and coins and stare at me with incredulous eyes as I inform them that a single U.S. dollar equals 8 rand.  Lastly, I have gotten questions about whether there are things like movie theaters, grocery stores, sports stadiums, and certain types of cares in America: South African and the United States do have many similarities in addition to their differences.

Despite a glowing welcome and great conversations with the kids and teachers, Assegai Primary School faces many challenges in regards to providing its students with an effective education.  To start off with, the school is filled with large classes, each with over 40 learners to only one teacher.  This is a problem unto itself because it decreases the interaction available between each student and his or her teacher.  This can be particularly worrisome for learners who are struggling in class and are not receiving enough attention to improve their grades.  Furthermore, there are no substitute teachers at the school.  So when a teacher is absent, that class is often left without any teacher to watch over them which ends up in a classroom full of loud and rowdy students where little learning is accomplished. In the first two weeks of my time at Assegai, a different teacher was absent on 7 of the 10 days, so a lack of replacement teachers is a constant issue.  Dealing with constantly-misbehaving children is also very taxing on the teachers of the school: many have told me how tired they get trying to control classes who often seem uninterested in learning and do not seem to realize the importance education will have on their future.  However, while behavior and keeping order is certainly a problem in each of the grade 4 classes I had been helping in, the kids are not the only ones to blame.  Many of these children have had difficult lives, often exposed to violence and drugs at home and are not always receiving the attention they need from their parents.  Many young kids are also on Ritalin to help them focus in class.  One young boy in grade 4 has the reading level of a grade R (the South African equivalent of kindergarten).  This boy failed grade 4 last year, yet still is not receiving the attention he needs to improve his reading ability.  Nevertheless, many teachers do find innovative ways to keep their learners captivated and focused: the grade 5 class I have been spending the remainder of my time in is quite well-behaved and respects their teacher, which may in part be due to the team point system the teacher uses in class and her kind, yet powerful demeanor. 

The provision of "elective" classes at Assegai is also an area of concern.  There is no formal  physical education or gym program at the school.  Instead, a coach, whose salary is paid for by a local chemical company trying to "give back" to the community, comes to the school every other week to spend some time doing physical activity with the children outside.  However, this coach must see both the lower and upper primary learners so each class of children only sees him once a month (for about an hour) which is not nearly enough structured exercise for the learners.  Secondly, the computer class is severely under-resourced.  There are about 35 computers in one small room of the school; however, about 15 of these computers don't work so only about 20 are usable.  However, since classes are so large (ranging from 40-45 learners on average), about half the class sits idly wasting their time as the others get to do a computer program for a couple minutes (classes are only 30 minutes once a week so by the time everything is set up and learners are settled, there is only about 15 minutes to do any sort of computer activity or teaching).

My time at Assegai Primary School has shown me that this teaching institution has many strengths - its warm, welcoming staff and learners, many bright children, and an organization dedicated to helping shape generations of children.  However, there is still much that Assegai can and must improve upon in order to keep growing as a institution that serves its community.  Working at Assegai has given me a wonderful first-hand glimpse into the workings of the South African school system that has taught me more about the struggles and needs of the Wentworth community and given me the opportunity to share my skills and interests with learners and staff of this school.