Maths teacher gives back
● New course aims to get kids’ education off to the best start
Walmer township preschool teachers are getting a jump on 2019 as they embarked on the New Beginnings SA course on Friday, hoping to get the best out of their young pupils.
The course is being conducted by retired Grey High School mathematics and computer science teacher Waldo Schumann, 77, who founded the three-course training model for teachers and principals.
Schumann said the project was aimed at training preschool teachers and providing schools with programmes and activities for the children.
He said he had begun developing the programme in partnership with Barry Gamble, director of NPO New Beginnings Trust, about three years ago, working with about 20 preschools in the area to see how they operated and what their shortcomings were.
The course looks at what teachers should be doing, how to set up school play centres to run more efficiently and additional activities to stimulate both pupil and teacher in class.
“To really start fixing education one has to start at the bottom ... The most important years of learning in a young child’s life are the years 0 to 6. Worldwide, these are also the most neglected years in education,” Schumann said.
The Greenshields Park resident, who retired from teaching in 2004, said he was working with the same 20 schools for the two-week programme hosted at Mosaic at the Links.
“By the end of this year we would like them all to have attended courses so that at the beginning of next year they can start with a full teaching programme in place,” he said.
“A kid’s mind at this age is like a computer – it can do everything but it needs to be programmed to do it. So they will learn whatever you are able to give them.
“The idea is to ensure that the kids learn as much as possible during this phase through more efficient organising of their daily routines to make the most of each moment.”
Gamble said when he started working with preschools in Walmer about 25 years ago, the centres had done little more than feed kids, and provide sleeping and play time.
“A lot has changed since then, but that is what made us realise the importance of this age group before grade 1, because if the foundation is not laid correctly then these kids stand no chance even getting into grade 1.
“This age is what counts because that is when they are like sponges, capable of learning anything. But space constraints limit learning in the area, hence we have the play centres which are a box of activities addressing different elements of learning,” Gamble said.
Diana Davies Preschool teacher Nandipha Kleinbooi, who attended the course on Friday, said it was very helpful in terms of managing her day to get the most out of her pupils.
“The course is immensely helpful just to better interpret what is expected and the most productive way of achieving these results,” Kleinbooi said.
Greenlight Daycare teacher Zizipho Ngxumza, 29, said: “I have already learnt so much in terms of organising my schedule as well as how to ensure the kids learn while playing.”
Schumann said the course was offered free and could be downloaded from www.newbeginningsa.weebly.com