Online Reporter
Thupeyo Muleya
IN a heart-warming display of leadership, Beitbridge senior traditional leader, Chief Tshitaudze is rolling out an initiative to mobilise Venda textbooks for 15 primary schools in the district.
This initiative aims to enhance pupils’ education and foster literacy in the local language, which was integrated into the national education curriculum a few years ago.
The chief handed over a consignment of Venda textbooks for children in Grades 3 and 4, yesterday, which he sourced with the help of Bubye Valley Conservancy (BVC).
The 600 textbooks were handed over to representatives of Mugaladivha, Malala, Langeni, Mpande, Mutetenwa, Mapili, Majini, Tongwe, Malala, Lesanthe, Madzivhe, Matshiloni, Malusungane, Zhopembe, and Penemene primary schools at a colourful event held at Malala Primary School in Ward Six.
The traditional leader, who is also a trained teacher, said the initiative, which will cover all local schools up to Grade 7 in the next few years, seeks to bridge the educational gap by providing learners with relevant and culturally sensitive materials.
“By making Venda textbooks available, with the support of the community, I hope to enhance students’ understanding and appreciation of their heritage,” said Chief Tshitaudze.
“I enlisted the support of Bubye Valley Conservancy (BVC), one of the key players that support service delivery initiatives in the education, livelihoods, health and water and sanitation sectors to assist in sourcing these books.
“This was after getting concerns from many community members, who noted that the teaching of Venda, which is the main language in this area, is being hindered by a shortage of textbooks and this has adversely affected the pass rate in that language over recent years”.
He said more support was required to ensure all schools are covered up to Grade 7 and that each of the 15 schools received 20 textbooks for Grade 3s and 20 for Grades 4s.
The traditional leaders said this initiative is a testament to the community’s commitment to education and the well-being of its young people.
Chief Tshitaudze said the donation of textbooks was a boost to what the Government through the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education was doing to improve the teaching of all indigenous languages countrywide.
“The mobilisation of these Venda textbooks is a significant step towards promoting inclusive education and supporting the diverse needs of students in Beitbridge,” said Chief Tshitaudze.
“You will note that Grade 3 and 4 are transition classes when pupils transit from infant classes, hence we started by mobilising books for these classes. Our desire as a community is to mobilise more textbooks up to Grade 7 level so that students from this area may perform better in public examinations.
“At the moment, we have pupils who do well in other subjects, but they struggle to do well in their home language and this is something we cannot allow to continue as community and traditional leaders”.
Beitbridge District Schools inspector (DSI), Mr Mbofholoho Muleya, said the gesture from the traditional leader will go a long way to improve service delivery in the education sector.
He said at the moment, the district has 72 registered primary and 19 secondary schools where the number of textbooks for the Venda language was still a challenge.
Mr Muleya said reading was very critical for effective learning by pupils and hence the collaboration to avail more resources by various stakeholders was a game changer.
“We are grateful for this kind of support from community leaders and we will ensure the books are secured and benefit our pupils from generation to generation, considering that each book’s life span should be within five years and above,” said the DSI.
Beitbridge West legislator, Cde Thusani Ndou said it was humbling to witness Chief Tshitaudze mobilise textbooks for our local schools, promoting the teaching of indigenous languages.
“This initiative will enrich our Venda cultural heritage and empower our children to connect with their roots. We should take a cue from the traditional leader as community members,” said Cde Ndou.
“As your representative in Parliament, I pledge to support similar initiatives that promote education, culture, and community development. Together, we can build a brighter future for our children and preserve our rich cultural heritage”.
