LIMPOPO EDUCATION DEPARTMENT AND STAKEHOLDERS CONTINUES TO PRIORITSE DELIVERY OF QUALITY BASIC EDUCATION

By Hanedzani Mbedzi
In an efforts to build trust and share information to improve the delivery of quality education,Limpopo Department of Education MEC Mavhungu Lerule-Ramakhanya held an engagement session with more than 2,500 School Governing Body (SGB) members and school principals at Harvest Time church in Giyani , Mopani East Education District.
The engagement provided a platform for SGB members and principals to raise concerns, share experiences and engage directly with the MEC on challenges affecting teaching and learning across schools in the district.
Lesiba Dikhuba, Chief Education Specialist for Institutional Governance and Support, highlighted the need to strengthen the capacity of School Governing Bodies (SGBs) and ensure a clear understanding of their roles in school governance “While the majority of SGBs in the province are functional and actively participate in school governance, there are still varying levels of capacity. Some members continue to struggle to distinguish between governance and school management functions. It is therefore important that we strengthen their capacity and ensure clarity on their respective roles and responsibilities,” said Dikhuba.
During the engagement, discussions focused on key issues requiring collective attention and coordinated interventions, including school discipline, infrastructure, security, sanitation, drug abuse, bullying, school safety and scholar transport.
Addressing the gathering, MEC Lerule-Ramakhanya emphasised the importance of strengthening partnerships between the Department, school management, SGBs, parents and communities in creating safe, supportive and conducive learning environments for all learners.

“The challenges raised today remind us that quality education cannot be achieved by the Department alone. It requires all of us, government, SGBs, principals, parents and communities to work together, take responsibility and act decisively. Our learners deserve safe schools, quality infrastructure and an environment where they can learn and thrive. We must therefore turn these engagements into concrete action and measurable change,” said MEC Lerule-Ramakhanya.
The engagement also highlighted the critical role played by SGB members and principals in supporting effective school governance, promoting accountability and ensuring that challenges affecting schools are identified and addressed collaboratively.
The Department recognizes that meaningful engagement with school communities is essential to understanding challenges on the ground and developing practical interventions that respond to the needs of learners, educators and schools.

A Year of Transformation and Development.

EDUCATION STRENGTHENS ECD PARTNERSHIPS TO BUILD STRONGER FOUNDATION FOR EVERY CHILD

By Katlego Mashula

POLOKWANE – The Limpopo Department of Education, in collaboration with Save the Children, SmartStart, Ndlovu Trust, the University of Venda, Thusanang Trust, Blessing Foundation, the National Development Agency (NDA) and other key stakeholders,converged for a two-day Early Childhood Development (ECD) Summit at The Ranch Resort outside Polokwane.

The summit held under the theme “Strengthening Partnerships for Quality Early Childhood Development in Limpopo,” was aimed at assessing the current state of the ECD sector in the province, identifying key challenges and strengthening partnerships to promote accessible and quality ECD opportunities for all children.

The summit brought together government, civil society organizations, academic institutions, development partners, municipalities, ECD practitioners and other stakeholders committed to placing children at the centre of development and ensuring that every child receives the support needed during their formative years.

Delivering an overview of the State of ECD Nationally, Department of Basic Education Director for ECD, Ivy Rapoo, highlighted the need to accelerate efforts to improve access to ECD services.
“We all need to understand the goal of the department. Only 43% of children have access to ECD, which needs to be improved. We are using leading objectives such as the 2030 strategy, which focuses on government systems strengthening across policy, funding, data and quality, which is the enabling architecture for universal access to quality ECD education. Bana Pele Shared Blueprint and the Bana Pele Leadership Summit Roadmap will be used as key instruments guiding the sector, particularly in prioritising vulnerable children. The development of a national screening tool would assist in identifying children who need access to ECD services and ensuring that interventions reach those most in need,” said Rapoo.

The summit provided a platform for stakeholders to engage on some of the critical issues affecting the ECD sector, including child protection and safeguarding, access, infrastructure and practice support, municipal and multi-sectoral partnerships, best practices, resource mobilisation and ECD registration.

Through commissions established during the summit, stakeholders developed action plans focusing on key priorities that require urgent attention. These included efforts to ensure that all ECD centres are registered through capacity-building initiatives and registration clinics, the creation of a resource library for ECD and encouraging municipalities to formally recognise ECD as an important developmental and public function.

The action plans are intended to strengthen coordination and accountability while ensuring that challenges identified during the summit translate into practical interventions that benefit ECD centres, practitioners, families and most importantly, children.

Head of Department for the Limpopo Department of Education , Maropene Seshibe, expressed appreciation to all stakeholders and ECD practitioners for their contributions, support and commitment to strengthening the sector. “As a department, we pride ourselves in our vision. We cannot talk about quality and excellence without including ECD centres. While everyone focuses on matric, we should shift our focus and take all the resources to ECD centres. We believe that this is where a solution to all issues, including social and economic challenges, lies,” said Seshibe.

Seshibe further said the department would intensify efforts to mobilise support for ECD centres and involve a broader range of stakeholders, including traditional leaders and municipalities. “We are going to mobilise the support of everyone in ECD centres in an active way, including traditional leaders and municipalities. A roadmap will be developed to take us to 2030 and build a foundation for our learners and practitioners,” he said.

MEC Mavhungu Lerule-Ramakhanya in her keynote address at the summit emphasized the importance of collaboration in ECD centres.“We want to make sure that, in our urgent drive to prepare children for the demands of the twenty-first century, we do not leave them behind or rob them of the foundation they need to thrive. We must not replace a child’s play with worksheets. Instead, we must nurture and satisfy their curiosity, giving them frequent opportunities to develop intellectually and engage meaningfully with their learning. It takes a village to raise a child. Limpopo must be at the forefront of this transformation. To achieve it, we must identify barriers to learning early, improve literacy and numeracy, promote play-based learning, provide appropriate ECD infrastructure, strengthen the quality of ECD programmes and expand the training of ECD practitioners,” said MEC Lerule-Ramakhanya.

As the summit concluded, the Head of Department, stakeholders and ECD practitioners participated in a pledge-signing ceremony, reaffirming their commitment to collectively advancing the ECD sector in Limpopo.

Through the pledge, stakeholders committed themselves to working together, sharing knowledge, establishing meaningful collaborations and creating a stronger sense of agency among all stakeholders in the ECD sector. The commitment further seeks to close the gap in access to quality Early Childhood Development and Education across the province and ensure that every child has an opportunity to receive a strong foundation for lifelong learning and development.

LANGUAGE COMPETITIONS PROMOTE LINGUISTIC EXCELLENCE

By Hanedzani Mbedzi
Improving language skills in the classroom requires creating a supportive environment and encouraging active and structured communication. In an effort to promote African languages ,learners from all 10 Education Districts across Limpopo Province converged to Shangri-La Country Hotel & Spa in Modimolle ,Wasterbereg Education District for the African Languages Intermediate and Senior Phase Enrichment Activity Competitions to showcase their linguistic abilities, creativity and confidence.

The two-day competition event which was held under the theme “Bullying” provided learners with a platform to demonstrate their proficiency in African languages while using language, writing and storytelling to raise awareness about the impact of bullying in schools and communities.

Day One featured three categories: Spelling Bee, Multilingual Spelling Bee and Story Writing, with 73 learners participating in the various activities. The competitions challenged learners to demonstrate their knowledge of spelling, vocabulary and language, while encouraging creative expression and a deeper appreciation of African languages.
Beyond competition, the activities provided an opportunity to promote the use, development and preservation of African languages among young learners, while nurturing their confidence to communicate and express themselves effectively.

The competition concluded on Day Two with Story Reading, bringing together 90 learners from across the province. The activity focused on developing learners’ ability to read with meaning, understanding and expression, while strengthening their comprehension and confidence.

Mamphokhu Seakamela, CES: GET in the Province, emphasised the importance of cultivating strong reading skills as a foundation for learners’ academic development and their ability to engage critically with information.
“Reading is a gateway to learning. It enables learners to understand information, think critically and engage with the world around them. By nurturing a culture of reading, we are equipping our learners with skills that will support them not only in the classroom, but throughout their educational journey and beyond,” said Seakamela.»

Through their performances, learners demonstrated their ability to interpret and communicate texts with confidence and expression, while showcasing their appreciation of African languages. The storytelling component also gave learners an opportunity to engage meaningfully with the theme of bullying and reflect on its impact on individuals and school communities.

Speaking during the competition, DCES for African Languages in the Province, Gloria Mapula Mochekgechekge, highlighted the role of the enrichment activity in strengthening learners’ reading and comprehension skills.“Through this activity, we want to showcase that our learners are able to read for meaning, understanding and expression. It is a language and reading activity that provides learners with an opportunity to demonstrate their abilities, strengthen their confidence and develop a deeper appreciation of African languages,” said Mochekgechekge.

The African Languages Enrichment Activity Competitions forms part of the Department’s ongoing efforts to promote multilingualism, nurture learner talent and create meaningful opportunities for young people to develop essential communication, literacy and critical-thinking skills.By combining language development with a theme that addresses a pressing challenge in schools, the competition demonstrated how education can empower learners not only to excel academically, but also to use their voices to promote respect, understanding and safer school communities.

A Year of Transformation and Development.