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The Citizen
19-07-2025
- General
- The Citizen
Education seminar fills gap of character cultivation
THE Westmead-based Tzu Chi Foundation – South Africa held an education seminar last week which aimed to fill a gap in the schooling curriculum, which is the cultivation of character. Themed 'Igniting Hope, Cultivating Character', the foundation's education project manager, Siyabonga Alex Qwabe, said the seminar was also about imparting the Tzu Chi humanistic spirit and education philosophy, character education and holistic learning strategies, and different education systems and practical teaching experiences. The seminar was attended by the foundation's volunteers and educators from Malawi, Zambia, Eswatini and Durban who had the opportunity to engage with different industry experts and guest speakers who delved into the seminar's aimed exploration into new approaches in inclusive education, character development, and skill-based learning. Also read: WATCH: Foundation donates reusable diapers One of the guest speakers was Ursula Collings, a former school principal whose talk on Thursday also encouraged teachers and parents to expose children to nature, especially in light of findings that more of them are spending almost seven hours glued to devices such as cellphones or tablets. Qwabe, a former educator himself, said the foundation seeks to 'plant a seed in learners and educators of certain principles and values which will make them better people'. 'Ours is to better shape society by changing the characters of people,' said Qwabe, who added that the knowledge gained by their volunteers from the seminar will be sown into the minds of the children they provide caregiving services to across different countries, including South Africa. The local branch of the foundation provides care-giving assistance to schools such as Addington Primary, SM Jhavary Primay and Nqayizivele in uMlazi. Among the lessons Qwabe said were presented to volunteers were inclusion and learning barriers, with strategies suggested on how to identify the latter and help children deal with it, in order to ensure the former manifests in a classroom. 'A lot of the experts were showing a practical and fun part of learning and also how to help learners forget about whatever burdens and troubles they may be dealing with in their personal lives,' said Qwabe, who added that it was also about cultivating the teacher's mental health. Qwabe said the foundation's central tenets are building compassion; respect; being responsible; courage; perseverance; contentment; emotional management; thankfulness; tolerance; filial piety; and giving. 'We go to schools and conduct fun yet informative lessons that are based on these central themes, and the aim is to change the characters of learners by reminding them of these principles,' said Qwabe. The seminar, which Qwabe said aimed to transform learners and teachers as a way of ultimately positively impacting communities, ran from July 9 to 13 at the foundation's Westmead centre. For more from the Highway Mail, follow us on Facebook , X and Instagram. You can also check out our videos on our YouTube channel or follow us on TikTok. Click to subscribe to our newsletter here At Caxton, we employ humans to generate daily fresh news, not AI intervention. Happy reading!
IOL News
18-07-2025
- Politics
- IOL News
Celebrating Mac Maharaj: a legacy of leadership in South Africa's freedom
Mac Maharaj at a 90th birthday celebration hosted recently by the Ahmed Kathrada Foundation. Image: Facebook MAC Maharaj was a giant of our freedom struggle in South Africa. Recognised for his negotiating skills, his tenacity in organising work and his incisive mind he established himself as a pre-eminent leader within the ranks of the ANC/SACP. Mac, while remaining a humble servant of the movement, reported directly to Oliver Tambo in exile in his capacity as secretary of the politico/military committee of the ANC. Mac was blessed with both organising skills and sharp political thinking. Hence his deployment in 1977 to Lusaka, Zambia, going into exile to run the underground machinery of the ANC. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Ad loading He entered South Africa illegally and at great risk during the dark days of apartheid to enhance the organising work of the alliance. Some of us took care of our leaders during those turbulent times. At the La Mercy Beach hotel I hosted many political activists. I fondly recall listening to Radio Freedom which was broadcast from Lusaka with Mac being a regular commentator. Our hearts would swell with pride as he would refer to the great mass work taking place in the Durban region in the 1980s. At that time many leaders were in and out of the country and if arrested they would be tortured and assaulted before being tried for insurrection. Mac, Ebrahim Ismail Ebrahim were targeted by the State for their incursions into the country. On another occasion I witnessed a gentleman with a goatee beard at the home of Moe Shaik. The dog was very friendly to him and I realised that he was a regular visitor at that home. We were trained to be disciplined and never asked questions. Every piece of information was on a "need to know basis." Some of us fondly called him Mac, Chacha. Mac was the first non- African to be elected onto the NEC of the ANC at the Qwabe conference in 1985. His contribution to our country was immense and must be recorded in the annals of our history. He is a recipient of the Order of Luthuli in Silver given by our democratic state. His appointment to the secretariat of CODESA was truly deserving as we ushered in a new democratic era. He was highly respected by Nelson Mandela, who told us that he always dealt with Mac outside the meetings, never challenging him in the presence of others. Mandela had the utmost trust in Mac and gave his writings which Mac smuggled out of Robben Island, stashed in his belt. That was the basis of the book, The Long Walk to Freedom. Notwithstanding his involvement in CODESA, Mac was part of a team of SACP cadres that initiated Operation Vula, to ensure that they were still in control even if negotiations with the Nats failed. The big Vula meeting took place in La Mercy, Tongaat. Luminaries like Joe Slovo, Chris Hani, Mac Maharaj, Pravin Gordhan, Simpiwe Nyanda, Moe Shaik and many other activists were in attendance, trashing out a strategy to deal with the scenario if negotiated settlements were not achieved. The Tongaat Minute was crafted at this meeting. A cottage in South Beach Road, near La Mercy Beach Hotel, was used for the discussions. Our high profile delegates stayed at a penthouse in Malabar Flats and the aeroplane house in Tongaat Beach. Arising out of this many were subsequently charged by the Apartheid State for Insurrection but the charges were later dropped. Even Mandela and Thabo Mbeki did not know about these meetings. Post 1994 I enjoyed listening to the anecdotes and recounting by Mac of his experiences in exile and the life-threatening underground work he did. We used to savour those stories over a couple of tipples. On the occasion of his 90th birthday, the people of South Africa salute this tireless freedom fighter, soldier of our peoples' army, political activist and theorist; underground operative, community leader and a struggle icon. Thank you for shaping our lives, our political thinking and building our understanding of mass mobilisation of the people. Mac Maharaj celebrated his 90th birthday on April 22. Logie Naidoo Image: File Logie Naidoo is a political activist and the former eThekwini Mayor. ** The views expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of IOL or Independent Media. THE POST
