By Akani Nkuna
In an effort to foster partnerships between schools and share resources, the Gauteng education department is improving its School Twinning Programme by going virtual.
The programme, which is unique to the province, pairs schools from different communities, encouraging resource-sharing and collaboration to enhance learner performance.
Speaking at Halfway House Primary School in Midrandthis week at the virtual launch, Gauteng Education MEC Matome Chiloane said the aim of programme was to “facilitate social cohesion in schools, enable sharing of resources, sharing of best practices and improve learner performance”.
He was addressing learners and principals from various schools participating in the project.
Excited pupils were keen to show off different projects, including a “smart yard” that used different kinds of technology to operate.
The MEC also attended a classroom session where he was shown how Grade 7 learners from different schools were connected virtually to a maths lesson at Halfway House.
The virtual teaching includes Halfway House Primary, Mikateka Primary School in Ivory Park, Bovet Primary School in Alexandra and Lyndhurst Primary School in Lyndhurst.
Mikateka Primary School principal Mandhla Sibanyonisaid that the programme was extremely beneficial for the pupils from his school, many of whom came from impoverished backgrounds.
The school is one of Gauteng’s fully ICT-equipped township schools, where learners engage in robotics and coding. Lessons are delivered through smartboards and computer tablets.
“Pupils from a township school can now code robotics,” he added.
Sibanyoni said that he embraced the “bromance” he shared with his counterpart at Halfway House and expressed his eagerness to have more schools in Gauteng come on board.
In order to address educational challenges, the department amended Section 17 of the SA Schools Act to incorporate the school governance of twinned schools. The initiative allows for one governing body to govern two schools.
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