Guests visiting Zenzeleni Primary School were treated to a play organised by Grade 7 children as part of their life orientation career day project.
The play, loosely based on the 1992 five-time Tony Award-nominated film Sarafina, was a collective project by the entire class. The play focussed on the 1976 student uprising in Soweto when schoolchildren gathered in the township to take a stand against the use of Afrikaans as the medium of instruction in township schools.
Throughout the play, various careers were highlighted, from teaching to journalism – and one boy played the role of the president of the country.
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English teacher, Bongiwe Matikinca, said the project was aimed at introducing children to different career fields from a young age. “With this project, we wanted them to know that there are many careers they can choose to follow after matriculating. Many of them are only exposed to careers such as being a doctor or a lawyer,” she said.
Matikinca added that they had called professional guests to offer motivation to the young ones. “We are hoping that the professionals we have called to speak to the children will be able to encourage them to stay in school and study hard so that they can make something of their lives. It is important that they maintain discipline so that they will be able to move forward and reach their goals.”
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Ayanda Jojo, a quantity surveyor from Nkonki & Associates Consulting, said he agreed to speak to the young ones because he wanted to give them something he never had when he was a child himself. “I only found out about quantity surveying when I was in Grade 10, which was a bit late for me to get to know a new profession,” Jojo said.
“I noticed that a lot of them want to be what every other child wants to become, so this is the right opportunity for them to learn that there are other professions that are just as ‘respectable’ as being a policeman or a teacher.”
Matikinca said more career days of this kind will be held because the children were clearly excited about showcasing their craft.
