Mr Louis Bates, principal of Breyten Primary School, was recently recognised for the difference he has made in the lives of the pupils in his school.
He was voted the Difference Maker of 2013 by a national Sunday newspaper.
“People are looking for hope, especially in education, and if I can be instrumental in giving people hope, I will do so.
We are achieving a lot with the little we have at the school,” Mr Bates said. During the past 10 years, Louis, with the help of Msobo Mines and other sponsors, managed to build four additional classrooms, six storerooms and a fully equipped computer centre at the school. This was done without the assistance of the Department of Education.
His perseverance and not taking “no” for an answer helped him ensure that pupils at his school pay very low school fees and receive the benefit of the best education and technology available.
The staff complement has increased from six in 2001 to 22 in 2013.
Louis strongly feels that the great teamwork and positive attitude of his staff contributed greatly to the success he has achieved.
“Teaching is a calling; therefore we should stay positive at all times and motivate the children to do their best. The gratitude we experience from our pupils makes going to school every day worthwhile and has made a difference in their lives,” Louis added.
Thirteen years ago the school had only one class for every grade.
Louis started negotiating with the Governing Body for another Grade 1 class and eventually a hall used as a storeroom was converted into four classrooms. They still needed four more classrooms and he again approached the Governing Body for the building of two Grade R classrooms.
The school undertook to erect the necessary buildings and to negotiate the best prices for the required building materials.
When he approached the Department of Education, he was told the school was not on the priority list and Louis turned to the mine and local businesses for their support.
He never gave up and at the end of 2010 four more classrooms and a fully equipped computer centre were built and paid cash.
With the help of Trollope Mining Services, Protea Tyres in Ermelo and other sponsors, the school now has 10 whiteboards, making the use of laptops and access to the Internet possible.
Louis hopes to buy six more whiteboards at R20 000 each for the remaining classrooms.
Six storerooms have also been added, one of which serves as a dining hall for about 100 less fortunate children who enjoy a daily meal here.
With the help of the generous sponsors, buildings to the value of R3-million have been erected at R1.7-million.
A great concern at the school was that many children did not understand English, but had to complete their exams in this language.
Last year Msobo Mine approached Louis to be part of a project to uplift the community of the Breyten district.
Together they decided to help teachers and pupils in the district to master English and Ms Florence Markram was appointed to help them with this task.
Florence, who tutored English in Southern Korea for four and a half years, now presents weekly training sessions at Breyten Primary School and 32 surrounding farm schools.
Louis and his team are thankful to their sponsors: Safika Oosthuizen, Msobo Coal, Xstrata Coal, Trollope Mining Services, Mr Fanie van Dyk of Jolomba Traders, Mr Willie van Rensburg of Protea Tyres and Mr Gerhard Pieterse of Hardie’s Tyres for their continued support and to everyone that voted for him in this category.
“We are living in modern times where technology plays a major role and it is for this reason that we bring technology to our pupils,” said the award-winning Louis Bates.
