Online Reporter
Isdore Guvamombe-Book Review
This book is a product of four experienced teachers – three females – and a male with a combined 85 years of experience in teaching, learner facilitation and examinations.
Ventures Primary ChiShona Smart Revision Series Grade 7 is indeed a new quintessential revision guide, published by College Press this year for revision of school work under the current Government approved Heritage Based Curriculum (HBC).
It is exceptionally handy revision guide for Grade Seven Shona examinations in accordance to Zimsec standards.
Simple to read, rich in text and answering to all the trinkets of the national examination, the revision book is a must for learners.
The four teachers produced this high quality, in-depth, learner-friendly and easy to understand revision guide in compliance with the national education question.
They gave it their best, using their expertise.
Simanga Beji, Tatenda Angrline Vambe, Spiwe Mangwanani and Rodreck Muponda-Lupande put their all in a textbook that is easy to understand to effectively make the child prepare for examinations.
Simanga Beji is a qualified teacher with 22 years of experience and holds a Bachelor Degree in (Primary) majoring in ChiShona. She has experience in tutorials Shona from beginners to adult level all races using both physical and online lessons.
Tatenda Angeline Vambe a primary school teacher with 18 years of experience. She reads a lot articles and texts on ChiShona language. She co-authored Ventures Gore Rechishanu, Gore Rechitanhatu and gore Rechinomwe.
Spiwe Mangwanani has 20 years of experience teaching upper grades. She is an educational writer with a passion for learners to excel. She co-authored Grade 7 Smart Revision Pupils Book.
The only male, Rodreck Muponda-Lupande has been teaching for over 25 years and gained experience in writing reading articles and has vast experience in marking Shona examinations.
Before this book, he co- authored Ventures Gore ReChishanu, Ventures Gore ReChitanhatu and Ventures Gore ReChinomwe.
This high‑quality, learner‑friendly content is meant to go a to greater length to support Grade 7 learners as they prepare for their examinations.
The book squarely answers to Heritage Based Education examination questions to the core and centre of a learner’s success.
That the book was not written by education-rank outsiders, but by experienced teachers who have been doing the practical work, is a great leap in Zimbabwe’s education system.
The participation of female teachers speaks to their importance in HBC curriculum and in the final preparation of the student to pass the examination and fit properly to the country’s education ethos.
The biggest a the writers’ ability to understand the ease of making learners get things right, based on their combined experience and personal interaction with learners at that level.
The book is different from many other books written by theorists outside the education sector and therefore is practically grounded on real issues.
With precise ChiShona, (Shona language) the book deal with language formulation, diction, comprehension and little everything else that make a learner understand the language in relation to the Shona culture and appropriate registers.
The writers then proceed carefully, to prepare the learners for national examinations with a buffet of ideas on management of playing and reading time; and psyching up the learner for examinations.
But Beji, Vambe, Muponda-Lupande and Mangwanani do not end there, they emphasize and instil learner focus, confidence and self-belief, the attributes a learner needs to pass examinations.
This kind of preparation often lakes in many learners.
They deal separately but comprehensively with examination papers 1 and 2.
Here, they provide 60 examination papers for revision and the questions are formulated and arranged according to ZimSec standards and examination procedures.
The questions are prepared in a manner that prepares and enables the learner to answer an actual examination questions.
On the final lap of the book, Beji, Vambe, Mangwanani and Muponda-Lupande provide answers to all the question, enabling the learner to test herself or himself and gauge the level of knowledge.
There is no doubt that the four educationists did an excellent job at a time when the Government of Zimbabwe is encouraging local people to develop their own country under the mantra Nyika inovakwa nevene vayo.
There is also no doubt that Heritage Based Curriculum is best understood by Zimbabwean teachers or education facilitators and that Beji, Vambe, Mangwanani and Muponda-Lupande aptly capture the national mood and ethos, in terms of helping the learner appreciate the country and languages.
That the book comes at a time when the Government is advocating for a strong use of indigenous languages, makes it fit into the national education grid.
Ode S. Beji, TA. Vambe, R. Muponda-Lupande and S. Mangwanani have done an excellent job and that their names will forever be carved into the sculpture of Zimbabwe’s education system.
Many learners will indeed benefit from their work.
It is indeed a quintessential Grade Seven ChiShona examination revision book.
Isdore Guvamombe is a veteran multiple-award winning Zimbabwean journalist and wordsmith known by the sobriquet, The Villager. Here he reviews this book in his personal capacity.
