Strong LIT and NUM Branches

Are 6-8 year olds ready for the lab? Can Grade R classes help themselves and are they in a position to help each other in the lab? Are the 9 -13 year group ICT literate enough to progress on their own? These are just a few of the many questions that concern the educator committed to the effective use of technology in the classroom.

The GET Willow tree is closely linked with the specie (Foundation Phase) and from the same genus / class / kind. Both species have many branches, but the two most important branches are Literacy and Numeracy. These branches are still in their infancy stages, one might say they are still twigs, at some schools; at others, they are fully developed branches with bark and leaves. At some schools they sway and move with the strong winds without breaking or losing a leave; at other schools, the bark gets bruised, the leaves drop and some years later, the branches are “dead”. Naturally, we are led to question why this is so and whether there is anything that we can do about it. Questions abound but the evidence is irrefutable: some schools allow their learners to develop in the ICT field and the labs in these schools are used daily to strengthen the twigs, bark and leaves, enabling them to withstand the onslaught of stormy weather during the years to come.

Year after year GET often plays second fiddle in the media to the Matric results; there is constant debate about which subjects are the most relevant if learners are to be properly educated and are to meet the demands of society. GET, while often ignored by the media, is the phase where the all-important building blocks, the twigs, bark cells and leaves are strengthen and layered. This is where all the roleplayers in education should focus attention, where they can strengthen the two underestimated and less focused on twigs – Literacy and Numeracy – so they can develop and strengthen into branches that will geed and nourish the tree of education as the learner approaches Grade 12, ultimately giving them the skill to flourish, blossom and bear fruit in the Grade 12 year. It is clear that ICT can play a vital role for the 6 - 8 -13 year olds as they work towards a dramatic improvement in the LITNUM area.

Dedicated facilitators, supportive EMDC Advisors, diligent teachers, supportive parents and dedicated learners who are willing, eager and sometimes SELF-equipped to use ITC are all key players in the quest to strengthen these two twigs, in the battle to help them grow into strong branches that will continue to feed and sustain the tree that is the learner’s education. The biggest challenge during the GET intervention program will be the schools’ and educators’ ability, willingness and determination to buy into the plan of ICT action and to run with it.

Do you agree or not?