Online Reporter
Sikhumbuzo Moyo, [email protected]
WHEN Primary and Secondary Education Minister Torerayi Moyo asked whether any school head had a degree in computer science among the school heads gathered at Coalfields Primary School in Hwange, Thandolwenkosi Ncube had no idea the question would change her life.
She quietly raised her hand. The Singeni Primary School headmistress from Nkayi was then called to the podium. What happened next left her struggling to believe what she was hearing.
Minister Moyo announced that she would accompany him to Russia early next year for a science exhibition, where she would have an opportunity to learn about robotics and other technology-related subjects.
But Ncube was not the only rural school head whose ordinary day suddenly turned extraordinary.
The minister then asked Hwange District Schools Inspector Lawrence Matshazi which school had recorded the province’s best Advanced Level results in 2025.
The answer was Mosi-oa-Tunya High School in Victoria Falls. Its headmaster, Roland Sibanda, was called to the podium and given another surprise — he would accompany the minister to the United Kingdom for the Education World Forum.
For two educators whose careers have been rooted in Matabeleland North, the announcement opened a door to international exposure that neither had expected.
“I will be visiting Russia early next year for a science exhibition event. I will also be in the United Kingdom for the Education World Forum. I shall go with you so that you learn a lot in robotics and other subjects related to technology. For the UK trip, I will be going with you as the head who produced the best Advanced Level results. You will get an opportunity to interact with educators from around the world,” Minister Moyo told the school heads.
For Ncube, who holds a degree in computer science, the moment was almost surreal.
“Honestly, I thought I had misheard. No one ever imagined that the right candidate could come from Singeni Primary School in Nkayi District. But Minister Moyo was very serious when he announced it in Hwange. I hold a degree in computer science and I will be doing a short course in robotics. What excites me most is the opportunity to learn robotics in Russia, a world leader in technology,” she said.
For a school head from rural Nkayi, the significance goes beyond boarding a plane. Ncube sees the opportunity as a chance to bring knowledge back home and expose rural learners to technologies that can shape the future.
“Thank you for entrusting a school head from Nkayi District with this responsibility. I will not disappoint you. I hope to acquire practical skills in robotics and STEM education. When I return, my goal is to introduce a STEM and Robotics Club at Singeni Primary and help other schools in Matabeleland North to do the same, so our rural learners can also be part of the future.”
The opportunity has also taken on a deeply personal meaning for Ncube and her family.
“To my family, it is a great blessing and honour. To Singeni Primary School and Matabeleland North Province, it shows that excellence can come from Nkayi and that our province can represent Zimbabwe on the international stage,” she said.
For Sibanda, the headmaster, the announcement came as an equally unexpected reward for the hard work that had produced Mosi-oa-Tunya High School’s outstanding 2025 Advanced Level results.
“To be honest, I did not expect it to be me. It came as a surprise and an exciting moment when the DSI said the name of my school. Although we had worked so hard to get the best results for our school, I never expected that one day this would take me this far.
“I never even dreamt of it. This is the result of hard work and teamwork from Mosi-oa-Tunya High teachers, support staff and parents. Accompanying the minister to a far distant land is a lifetime experience.”
The trip will also fulfil a personal dream for Sibanda, who had hoped to visit the United Kingdom more than two decades ago.
“I had wanted to go there in the early 2000s but failed. Now that I have been given a chance to accompany the minister, I feel greatly honoured to have been allowed to fulfil the dream of my life to visit for business and learning purposes. This will indeed change my scope of seeing things and my administration,” he said.
For an educator whose work is rooted in the classroom, the visit will also provide an opportunity to see how other countries approach education and to bring those lessons back to Victoria Falls.
“I am looking forward to learning best practices in education employed by other countries and comparing them with Zimbabwe’s education system. I am also hoping to share with the world what makes our education system tick.
“I hope to marry my geographical theory with the practical now that I have been afforded the opportunity to visit the places I have been teaching about in class. My geographical scope will be wide and accurate. This will not only benefit my school but the province and the nation,” he said.
Sibanda said the experience would change not only how he saw the world, but also how he approached his work.
“Such encounters with the outside world leave someone a different person altogether and at a higher level than before. The experience would also broaden my thinking and perspective,” he said.
For Ncube and Sibanda, the journeys ahead therefore represent more than international travel. One is heading to Russia, determined to bring robotics closer to rural pupils in Nkayi. The other is heading to the United Kingdom after his school’s academic achievement opened an unexpected door.
And both are carrying with them the hopes of schools and communities that may be thousands of kilometres from the world’s major education centres, but are increasingly finding their own place in the global classroom.
