*Support Equal Educations's Latecoming Campaign!* (Zingisani Nkanjeni )
Next week Equal Education (EE) members at High Schools across Khayelitsha are doing a campaign against late-coming. Research by Wittenberg at UCT has shown that 20% of learners arrive late at school. Research by the Human Rights Commission and HSRC has shown that 20% of teaching time is lost due to late-coming and absenteeism. This happens disproportionately in poor schools. In Khayelitsha schools the first period is often lost. Learners will be outside their schools from 7:30am handing out well-researched information about late-coming and how to stop it. They have prepared fliers, posters, placards and they have worked tirelessly to prepare themselves. They have dealt with the press and done diplomacy with their own principals. Week after week after week of exciting youth group activities has laid the foundation for this campaign, as has been the case before. The new "leadership committee", chosen from the ranks of the youth group itself, has dramatically boosted EE's strength. The Youth & Campaigns Department have done brilliant work to make this all possible. Some Principals and government officials, who previously were skeptical about EE, have been won over by this campaign. It shows that although we will demand resources and equal education, we will first hold ourselves accountable and be the most serious, committed, hardworking, inspired learners in South Africa. Others, like government official Robin Botes and Luhlaza Principal Mr Makapela regard even this campaign against late-coming as a threat to their authority and refuse to support it. But new people join EE every day. In late-July we will turn our attention to a massive campaign for libraries in South African schools. A wide alliance is already being built, and evidence being meticulously assembled, in preparation for that next campaign. In the coming weeks, during the late-coming campaign, EE members will be an example to their fellow learners, and will earn their place at the forefront of a campaign for equality and quality in SA schools. EE members want to be on time, they want to learn, and they want libraries in which to read and grow. They are living examples of the criminality of the unequal and disfunctional schools in townships and rural areas. EE members are exercising their freedom by taking responsibility for their own schools and their own lives. But they are also demanding real freedom, the freedom not only to speak, but to know enough to really have something to say. *No to Latecoming! Yes to Libraries!* Below you will find a brilliant poem written by an anonymous member of the EE youth group, a high-school child in Khayelitsha. *Late Coming* Enough with all this lateness Its time to break the silence Is it possible for many schools to have, A common weakness Is it the friends we trust That leads our goals to dust? But the choice is yours, Late coming is not a must This thing is a disease It spreads to schools with ease The premises are being surrounded, By a swarm of bees It is the past we had To make us this real bad I know some couple of kids, Who plays both Mom and Dad Like a disease it spreads To many schools so mad, I’ve had it with late coming, this thing needs to end *For more information:* EQUAL EDUCATION SPOKESPERSONS: Nokubonga Yawa 0769004048 [email protected] Lwandiso Stofile 0789765783 [email protected] Yoliswa Dwane 021 3618160 [email protected] Joey Hasson 082376555 [email protected] To speak to learners, please be in contact with Joey Hasson. ---------- Equal Education is a community organisation working for quality and equality in South African schools. EE is based in Khayelitsha. Office tel: 0213618160. -- [email protected] cell:0789228959 tell:021-3618160 fax:0866682445 --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You are subscribed. This footer can help you. Please POST your comments to [email protected] or reply to this message. You can visit the group WEB SITE at http://groups.google.com/group/yclsa-eom-forum for different delivery options, pages, files and membership. To UNSUBSCRIBE, please email [email protected] . You don't have to put anything in the "Subject:" field. You don't have to put anything in the message part. All you have to do is to send an e-mail to this address (repeat): [email protected] . -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
