The school that lives to tell the tale
"Education is in my blood," said Florida Primary School’s Principal, Barbara M Fick.
Florida Primary School turns 130 years old, and still lives to tell the tale. “I feel very privileged to leave my footprint on the history of the school among those of the heroes who established it,” said Florida Primary School’s Principal, Barbara M Fick.
Florida Primary School is the oldest school in Roodepoort. It has an amazing history, of which it is extremely proud. This is why Principal Fick spent some of her precious time combining all the school’s records and creating a profile of the school.
When asked what she loves most about the history of the school she said, “From the word go, the school was established to stand tall in the community and up to this day we continue do so. We also value the school’s original mission and vision and still uphold it.” She also mentioned that Florida Primary is a school that aims to provide for the needs of its learners. She has been the principal of the school for 14 years and has not wished on even a single day that she had chosen another career. “To me, it is not a career. It’s my life, because I am passionate about education,” she said.
Some of the history of the school that Fick put together follows:
10 October 1888 – Florida Public School was opened. Its first Principal was GG le Roux. There were 39 pupils in the school which consisted of three classrooms.
1898 – Enrolment had increased to 120 pupils, and another classroom was built. The language of teaching and learning was Dutch. Any other language, such as English, was regarded as a foreign language.
October 1899 – The school was closed and the Florida English Medium School was opened in 14 June 1901 with 44 learners. The first permanent Principal was WC Nicholls. Shops on the main street of Florida were hired and used as classrooms. The outbreak of World War II interrupted the process of education for the learners.
August 1906 – The Dutch language was introduced, but during a school inspection in 1908, it was found that 42 per cent of the learners were Afrikaans-speaking. Therefore, in 1919, the inspector recommended that from that year the Grade 1s should be taught in Afrikaans. However, there were only two staff members who could speak the language.
1910 – Corporal punishment was being administered.
After the World War I, many people left the area and enrolment dropped tremendously. Florida School merged with Bantjiesskool and the enrolment rose to 240 learners.
1914 – A new school opened on Bantjies Mine and enrolment dropped yet again.
1929 – The school on Bantjies Mine closed after enrolment had increased to 234. After that school was closed, their furniture and learners were moved to Florida and an additional classroom was built.
No records were found relating to the Principal’s retirement or resignation, but, on 13 May 1932 there is a report of his death.
19 January 1931 – DD Winckworth was appointed as Principal. The school was then called Florida Government School.
1948 – The school’s name was changed to Florida Primary School.
The National Feeding Scheme issued learners with milk. It is interesting to note that even then, there was a need for a feeding scheme.
With the opening of the new Florida Afrikaans Medium School, all the Afrikaans pupils left and the school became an English Medium School.
1963 – The Department of Education decided to erect a new school building and modernise the old structure.
1992 to 1996 – JT Fourie was appointed as Principal. The school was announced as a Model C school.
May 1996 – An indigenous garden was established.
1998 to 2002 – The school uniform consisted of grey trousers and the school T-shirt with a logo and short sleeves. In winter, the learners wore long-sleeve shirts and tracksuits.
2005 – Outcomes-based education (OBE) was introduced.
May 2005 – Barbara M Fick was appointed as Principal. She still holds the position. After scrutinising the school’s historical mission statement, she took it upon herself to introduce a cultural programme. She realised that more than half of the learners were not being developed holistically as they were not participating in any extramural activities, because of transport problems. Having a cultural programme during normal school hours ensures that every learner is exposed to at least one cultural activity.
Principal Fick plans to retire in 2019 because she will be 65 years old.
At the end of her school profile she wrote, “I believe that the goal has long been achieved and that Florida Primary School continues to be the best in the West.”
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