Learning through lockdown

Amanda and Kwanele are our two gifted Grade 10 students who we are supporting through their secondary education. When one of their previous sponsors had to pull out in early 2020, we began supporting them just with their transport and school equipment. Shortly after this, South Africa, like most of the world was hit by COVID-19 restrictions and lockdowns. In order for Amanda and Kwanele to be able to keep up with their studies, we provided them with laptops, modems and data dongles so that they could access on-line learning along with their peers. But they both discovered that learning at home and alone was not easy. This is what they told us of their experiences:

Amanda said, “Studying from home during lockdown has been really hard. Even though we had online lessons and the teachers sent us work and notes through What’s App class groups, it was still very hard and felt as if we were learning on our own. Learning from home is much harder than learning in school as there are many more distractions…I felt overwhelmed and under a lot of pressure keeping up with the work and submitting it in time.  Learning from home is very different from learning at school, having to ask questions or understand work explained through online communication is much harder than having the teacher in front of me…”

But she went on to say that “…attending online lessons and trying my best to understand the work is what helped me during lockdown. Asking questions, avoiding procrastination and going over my notes also helped me cope with online learning.

After months of not going to school we finally went back. As scary as it was during a pandemic, it was also very exciting. Seeing my friends and being able to learn in class again felt really great. Being back at school made learning much easier, it is easy to focus in class and studying with my peers does help. Even though we only attended school two or three days a week to start with it was much better than not attending school at all. We then returned to school every day and I was very glad. I feel very fortunate to be able to attend school daily because most learners in my area only attend school 2 or 3 days a week, and I know how hard it is to learn when you don’t attend school every day.”

Kwanele said, “It has been a hard time studying online because of the COVID 19 regulations in the country. When I started it was like everything was still going to be normal, but as time went on, I faced a lot of issues. The biggest issue that I faced was distractions in the house. The noise during daytime is normal in the environment but for me it is not. Writing up notes was fine, the problem started when I had to do class activities as I really have to focus, but the noise wouldn’t let me. It was even harder if we were doing online tests or assessments. Sometimes the internet connection was slow so I would miss some parts of the lesson. Sometimes the workload felt like too much.

Another issue that I faced was time management. Sometimes I would be late for the lessons that were after break. During the break I maybe made food that took longer to be prepared, so I would then be late for class…or sometimes I would watch TV or use my cell phone, which we don’t do at school, and so that made me late for my next lessons. But I was so proud of myself for always keeping my time in the morning before the first lesson.

But with all these challenges I am proud to say that I was able to cope, and I didn’t drop my marks when we went back to school. It was a tough time yes, but it definitely helped me improve my time management skills!”

We are so very proud of these students, of how well they have coped and despite everything, stayed on top of their studies. But, unfortunately, this year, the organisation that was sponsoring their school fees has dropped out, without having paid any of the fees. We have had to step in – it was that or they would have to leave! These exceptional students have great plans for their futures, Amanda wants to study psychology, while Kwanele wants to become a chemical engineer. We want them to continue getting the education they deserve and to that end need your support.

If you would like to help Amanda and Kwanele stay in school, please donate here. Or if you can, set up a small standing order. A monthly standing order of a few pounds goes a very long way in South Africa! And every single penny you give, goes where it is needed. Thank you!