A service learning project completed by second-year Architecture students will continue to give joy to learners at a remote primary school for years to come. Using mostly recycled and donated material the playground at St Michaels Primary School in Grabouw has had a complete facelift.

Students designed and built decking, a pergola (covered outside area), fireplace and painted a child-friendly wall to make the area more attractive.

Architecture lecturer Hermie Voulgarelis says students travelled to the school for a week and a half to complete the project.

“The school was selected for its involvement in our Multigrade Programme and its vicinity to Cape Town,” she says.

HELPING HAND: Architecture lecturer Hermie Voulgarelis helps a learner leave her handprint on the wall. 

Senior Architecture Lecturer Jolanda Morkel says a large part of the playground used to be practically unusable because a large container cut the area off, making it difficult for children to access a wooden play park.

“Now the outside area flows off of the classrooms creating a much larger play area,” she says.
“The pergola will also assist in keeping some of the wind and heat off the area.”

ALL TOGETHER NOW: St Michaels learners on the newly built decking which links classes to the playground.

St Michaels Principal Nicolas Davids says he had no idea a few simple changes could make such a huge difference.

“They opened our eyes to how the space could be used,” he says.

The next phase of the project, expected to role out next year, will revamp the entrance to the school.

As a reminder of the hard work put in students, learners, teachers and lecturers were all invited to leave a coloured hand print on the outside wall. 

HANDY HELP: Learners give Architecture students a big thank you for revamping their playground.

By: Lauren Kansley
Photos by: Shawn Uys

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A Hospitality Management Service Learning programme has received a thumbs-up from the City of Cape Town.

The programme, a collaboration between CPUT and the City, sees Hospitality Management students train owners of Bed and Breakfast(B&B) establishments, in a bid to improve service delivery in the local tourism industry.

The initiative, which is in its third year, has proved to be such a success that the City is now urging CPUT to roll out a large-scale Service Learning programme in order to train more B&B staff members.

LEARNING: Students show participants how to properly set up a table for a meal

“This programme should be taken to new heights,” said Manager of Local Area Tourism Development, Mthetheleli Hugo.

The programme currently runs over a week at the Hotel School in Granger Bay and has a limited number of participants. However, Hugo said he would like the programme to run over three weeks a year and see more people participate.

“In this business, there is money to be made. But you can’t do this if you don’t have passion for people or the skills to present your product,” he said.

During the week stint, owners attended several practical and theoretical workshops, organised by second-year Hospitality Management students. The workshops covered areas such as food preparation, accommodation and beverage management.

Natasha St Clair, owner of Bonani B&B in Thornton, said the programme was excellent and she will be able to implement what she learnt in the daily operations of her business.

SKILLS: A student casts a watchful eye over a participant during a cooking lesson

But it was not only the B&B owners that benefitted from this programme.

Student Gian Devey said the programme allowed students to interact with individuals in the industry, who in turn shared their knowledge.

Head of Department at the Hotel School, Rianne Voigt said they are looking forward to running the programme in 2012 and extend the training to more individuals.

By Candes Keating

Photos by Shawn Uys

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LIKE most Universities CPUT is focused on delivering the best in teaching and research but we are also leading the way in another important aspect - Service Learning.

Former Peninsula Technikon Vice-Chancellor Professor Brian Figaji discussed this vital point during the Service Learning (SL) Open Day held at CPUT’s Bellville Campus last week.

Prof Figaji said SL was important to staff and students alike because it made courses more relevant and gave students the opportunity to impart their knowledge on their communities.

He said staff also had something to gain in the SL process since it is ‘gratifying’ to see their students grow in a company.

“The personal satisfaction is what makes you grow and happy. It is the same thing that makes people get into teaching even when they are not paid well,” he pointed out.

“Send your students to remote areas, the real societies, so they can see what’s happening there and have a holistic view of society. Use any opportunity to instill value. Poverty does not make you less of a person.”

Professor Figaji said SL also satisfies CPUT’s mission to make coursework more relevant and urged the private sector to get more involved.

The Food and Technology Department was awarded the overall winner in the competition for the best stall while Mechanical Engineering and Public Management were runner-ups for Most Innovative and Best Partnership respectively.

By Thami Nkwanyane

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The Education Department recently acknowledged 3rd year Adult Basic Education and Training (ABET) students who completed their Service Learning.

A certificate ceremony was held where various community partners that students were placed with, were given an opportunity to present feedback about working with CPUT students.

The event was aimed at celebrating the outstanding achievement of students as well as the synergy of working together with partners like the Department of Education, the Service Learning Unit and the City of Cape Town. The event also acted as a forum to reflect upon the role of Adult Basic Education and Training, Service Learning as well as the role of universities in promoting education.

Service Learning requires students to participate in an organised service that responds to a specified community need. It offers them the opportunity to work with the community while being mentored by experienced educators in the workplace.

“Service Learning uses various departments at CPUT to deliver service. ABET is one of these programmes. It is important because over 40% of adults in South Africa are illiterate,” says Dr Joyce Nduna, Head of Community Engagement and Service Learning.

Mr Rodney Pick of the City of Cape Town said, “We look forward to expanding ABET. Efforts of the City of Cape Town are pursued within the wider context of the economy as we live in a knowledge- based society. We are proud of our relationship with this institution.”

A third year ABET student said, “I didn’t only go to teach, but also to learn. We as CPUT students, are ambassadors in the community and if we don’t become teachers, who will teach? ABET gives us the opportunity to gain information and skills and to contribute selflessly for success of the ABET project.”

CAPTION: (from left) Ms Nazlene Julius (Project Manager for ABET at the Western Cape Education Department), Dr Joyce Nduna (Head of Community Engagement and Service Learning), Mr Faiz Marlie (Head of the Education Department), Mr Rodney Pick (Head of Training and Development at the City of Cape Town), Ms Gadija Solomons (ABET Projects Assistant), Ms Barbara Manona (ABET Projects Co-ordinator) and Mr Mzwandile Gagu (Manager of Human Capital Development at the City of Cape Town).

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CPUT has graduated its first batch of lecturers in a short course on Service Learning and Community Engagement.

The regional programme was coordinated by the Community Interaction Centre at Stellenbosch University in partnership with the Community Engagement Unit at UWC and the Service-Learning Unit at CPUT.

SL and CE have become core functions of the higher education sphere in recent years and through teaching, learning and research- universities are encouraged to engage with the communities around them to solve a variety of societal issues.

CPUT’s own SL unit won a top prize at a recent conference attended by all Universities of Technology and was commended for great strides taken in encouraging all courses to adopt the programme.

Lecturers Nicholas Pinfold, Pavla Mokeona, Fattinald Rangogo, Dr Felix Nchu and Desmond Jackson kept CPUTs flag high during the short course with three of them graduating with distinction.

All of the lecturers are already involved in highly successful projects with Pinfold’s class having redesigned the layout of an informal settlement and Jackson’s class having used innovative sandbag building techniques in the construction of low cost housing. Mokeona’s project includes a partnership with WESGROW to develop emerging enterprises and Nchu’s students train the community to establish and improve their food gardens.

The graduates were part of an inaugural class selected from the three universities and it is hoped the course will later become mandatory for all lecturers at higher education institutions who engage in Service-Learning.

Written by Lauren Kansley

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Liaises with the media and writes press releases about interesting developments at CPUT.

This project has gone a long way in the development of our community, said Ashley Searle, Director of the Office of the Consumer Protector.

Searle, who was speaking at the Service Learning Journalism Reflection event, hosted by the Service Learning Unit, commended journalism students who recently participated in a community project that saw them create awareness around Advice Offices.

These offices, which are the community arm of the Office of the Consumer Protector, a unit within the Department of Economic Development and Tourism, are mandated by law to provide consumer related advice to the public.

In a bid to increase awareness around the services offered at the offices, the students compiled newsletters which were distributed in the various communities.

The project was a collaboration between the Service Learning Unit, the Journalism Department and the Office of the Consumer Protector.

Searle, who was the keynote speaker at the event that was held on 19 February on the Bellville campus, said the newsletters stimulated and enhanced the role that Advice Offices play in communities.

He said while the project benefitted the community, it also added to the development of the students.

“Students had the opportunity to take theory and implement it in the community. This is one of the main reasons why our office saw this project as being relevant,” he said.

“Let us not make this a once off project. There is an opportunity to take this to another level,” said Searle.

Journalism Lecturer and Service Learning Convenor for the project, Clement du Plessis said students got a “taste of what journalism is all about.”

“They were exposed to the community and gained a lot from this experience,” he said.

In total six different newsletters were compiled and distributed in various communities.

Journalism student and group leader, Kobus Pretorius, said it was a “good learning experience.”

Students had to go out into the communities, interview individuals, take photographs and decide on how the information should be packaged.

Pretorius said the project helped students to develop skills which are vital for when they enter the world of work.

Associate Dean of Informatics and Design, Colin Daniels said projects such as these add another dimension to students’ education.

Daniels said it is important that teaching and learning goes beyond the classroom.

Jacqui Scheepers, Manager of the Service Learning Unit said it is important to use the youth in programmes that can impact on local communities.

Scheepers said they will look at rolling out the programme with another group of journalism students in the second term.

By Candes Keating

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