Pretoria - Schools must work with local communities to provide useful information that can change the living conditions of communities, says Water and Sanitation Deputy Minister Pamela Tshwete.
The Deputy Minister was speaking at the handing over of a media classroom at Midrand Primary School on Wednesday.
“The school principal must be able to send critical messages to the parents whenever there is a need to do so. Even the ward councillor may relay community messages through this access point to reach both the school educators and the parents of the children attending the school.
“We must now see a dynamic link between the school and society in terms of communication, information acquisition and dissemination,” the Deputy Minister said during the handing over of a media classroom at Midrand Primary School.
The school became eligible for the MTN Media Classroom after entering the Baswa Le Meetse (Youth in Water) competition.
The Baswa le Meetse Awards is a ministerial project that has been active since 2003. It aims to recognise the role of young people in educating society about integrated water management, sanitation, health and hygiene related issues.
The department targets grade 4 to grade 6 learners in five categories: drama, traditional music, poetry, praise singing and poster design.
Midrand Primary scooped first place in the poster category both provincially and nationally. They came in second in the drama category provincially. The school also won a R6 000 cash prize.
The MTN Media Classroom consists of 21 computers with internet connection and preloaded scientific programmes. Five educators are also trained.
Deputy Minister Tshwete said the school must use the classroom to do its work better.
“Our schools must be a training ground for the leaders of tomorrow. This means teachers must provide leadership and ensure that they guide the children and advise the parents in the most essential areas of training and education,” the Deputy Minister said.
Since the beginning of the project, 50 media classrooms have been handed over across the country. This is the third one to be given to a Gauteng school. – SAnews.gov.za
