65 Centenary Edition Our centenary year with a whole lot of twists, is the only way I could describe the year gone by… We were delighted that the live Afrikaans Literature & Poetry production by PIT-Productions, was able to take place after some doubt. This was again undoubtedly a highlight of the year for our Grade 12 students. I have a deep sense of gratitude for the staff of our department and for the boys we teach at this wonderful institution. The positivity which the boys demonstrated was contagious and I learnt much from these young men. Congratulations to Ben Oellermann and Marnus du Toit, our two top Afrikaans Grade 12 student for 2021, who in challenging times, managed to achieve phenomenal results. We are all proud of you! Mrs Sonia Cairns HOD Afrikaans The Dalai Lama said, ‘When educating the minds of our youth, we must not forget to educate their hearts.’ This year presented the English Department with the most incredible opportunity to do just that. We enhanced the content we taught by relating it to extraordinary events that took place in our country this year – from sudden and terribly sad family bereavements, to fear and anxiety provoked by unrest, to the magnificent achievements of athletes at the Olympic and Paralympic Games in Tokyo. These events lent themselves to expanding both the hearts and the minds of the boys as we could interrogate and analyse how the media portrayed such events. Such critical engagement is an integral part of teaching and learning English. Beginning the academic year as the height of the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic rose was never ideal. Fortunately, after gaining experience from the 2020 online learning programme, both the staff and the boys were far more adept at surfing and English lessons progressed smoothly. Even our new Grade 8s managed to stay on their metaphorical boards until they resumed in-person classes. As in 2020, the success of the online learning programme is attributable to the quality of the resources and the dedication that the English department team members have shown. Sadly, at the end of the first term Mr Sam Mofokeng left Kearsney to begin a new adventure with his wife in Cape Town. We welcomed Mr Ndumiso Makhathini to the department from Maritzburg College. He is very well acquainted with Kearsney having spent a spell as an intern at the College. He is a skilled and professional teacher who has exacting standards and I am sure he will spur the boys to achieve the best they can. I am certain that he will have many happy years with us at Kearsney. Unfortunately, we also take leave of Mr Greg Thomson. Greg and his wife intend to heed the call of the international community and travel as much as they can. We wish them both much adventure and happiness in their future. The English department team is made up of creative and divergent thinkers who work as a unified and cohesive team. 2021 has been an unpredictable year and presented different challenges, but nothing that has been insurmountable. I cannot thank the staff members enough for their hard work and willingness to face any challenge with enthusiastic optimism. Mrs Jane Curtiss HOD English At the begging of 2021 we were pleased to welcome Mr Senzo Mtshali as a qualified part-time teacher, after spending three years at the College as an intern. We have no doubt that he will continue to grow and boys will also benefit from his teaching. We also welcomed Mr Yanga Sotshangane and Miss Dineo Fihlela as new interns in the department. Both have settled well and have quickly bought in to the goals of the department and the ethos of the school. This year was relatively smooth, compared to the previous, in terms of COVID-19. Since we were in our second year of the pandemic, we could manage academic responsibilities and navigate the challenges better. However, we learnt that technology will never completely replace experienced teaching in class, especially in IsiZulu First Additional Language. It was evident enough a number of boys were struggling, particularly in the lower grades. We had to constantly review our syllabus, assessments, strategies and teaching methods to close the gap and inspire boys. The department has also made significant strides in terms of developing quality material and more material to be used with technology. As for Grade 10, 11 and 12, the focus was to teach up and assess down. This simply meant that we focussed more on what is relevant for the boys to achieve their best in their final IEB examinations. This proved to be effective as most Grade 12s performed to their potential in the Trial examinations. Within our syllabus, we continue to tackle issues of transformation and diversity, through our materials such as books, themes, pictures, current affairs which stimulates interesting debates, which also help our boys to have a broader view of life outside Kearsney. The goal is for the teachers to be neural and passive in these debates, not to drive a particular agenda but to encourage growth. There is no doubt that IsiZulu is growing, and this bodes well for the future. The numbers of the pupils are increasing, which is pleasing, as it is my firm believe that we need to maintain our own indigenous languages and preserve the cultures. This is another way of building social cohesion. I quote Nelson Mandela “If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his own language, that goes to his heart.” I thank IsiZulu staff member, Mr Zungu, Mr Mtshali, Mr Sotshangane and Miss Fihlela. I am truly grateful to have such a dedicated and supportive team of teachers. Each member brings something special and is always willing to go the extra mile. The excellent quality of work we produce is due to their teamwork, commitment, and positive work ethic. Mr Bongi Ndaba HOD IsiZulu The study of Mandarin as a second additional language is now in its eighth year at the College. Ms Dai left the College at the end of Term 1 after four and a half years in our department. She is a professional teacher who worked hard to maintain an excellent standard. Ms Li took over from Ms Dai in Term 3 with great ease. She is an enthusiastic teacher who has captured the boys’ interest in Mandarin. She works extremely hard and has made the most of her first six months at the College. Once again were not able to hold our Annual Chinese Cultural evening due to COVID-19 restrictions, however, we allowed our boys the opportunity to write the HSK (Hanyu Shuiping Kaoshi) examination on 30 October. The results of the examination were not available at the time of print. Ms Dai and Ms Li conducted some Chinese art classes with the boys and they created Chinese lanterns and learned calligraphy. Ms Li also cooked for her Grade 8 class so that they could taste some authentic Chinese cooking. Mrs Rox-Anne du Plessis HOD Mandarin Languages Afrikaans (First Additional Language) English (Home Language) IsiZulu (First Additional Language) Chinese Mandarin (Second Additional Language) Mandarin classes - the boys took Chinese art classes, where they created Chinese lanterns and learned calligraphy. Artwork by Flynn Bunyan (Grade 12) entitled “Adventure Awaits”. Mixed media on paper.
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