Mr Joseph Phungo, the retired principal of Manaledzi Secondary in Tshiozwi, has volunteered to help learners around the Sinthumule Kutama area who had failed their Grade 12 exams by teaching them and giving them a second chance to rewrite their subjects – free of charge – so they can still realise their educational dreams.
Phungo started his own centre for learning, called the Joe Phungo Foundation. With the help of 15 other voluntary educators, they teach different subjects to 159 learners who had registered to write their supplementary examinations in June this year. The centre is situated at Gogobole, at Sukumani Kundani Secondary, where they offer tutoring in critical subjects, such as maths, physical science and languages.
"I saw a need in my community to help young people who struggle with their studies. My wish is to contribute towards an educated future nation, and this is the best I can offer to learners who failed Grade 12. I want to encourage those younger than me to choose their careers wisely. I have been doing this since the beginning of the year and sincerely hope it will pay off," said Phungo.
"We do afternoon classes and try to work through the syllabus as quickly as possible, so that, by the time their teachers start teaching the relevant subjects, they are already familiar with the work. I have also received positive responses from teachers so far, who say I am making their work much easier."
Programmes like these, however, require support and Phungo said that they still needed stationery, computers, more tutors and other resources needed in a learning environment. He is calling on other retired educators to also reach out to their communities. "As a retired professional, I have come to realise that I can still make a difference. This programme can help a lot of children," he said.