History Lesson

We’ve been at the University of Cape Town all week hearing different lectures and presentations in preparation for our teaching which starts on Wednesday!  It’s been really interesting to hear about the educational system in South Africa and the challenges they have encountered since apartheid.  As much as we’ve learned, I’m just curious to meet the students and see the school in session for myself! 

History was always my least favorite subject in school, but I have really been fascinated to learn about South Africa’s history.  I knew very little before coming here, so I thought I’d share a little about what we’ve learned the past 10 days or so.

Apartheid in South Africa was begun by the National Party government in 1948 and lasted until 1994.  This was essentially a legal form of segregation by race, much like the United States before the Civil Rights Movement... separate busses, schools, churches, beaches for blacks and whites.  South Africa became a democratic nation in 1994, but still suffers from apartheid’s consequences today.  When we went to the District 6 Museum, we learned a lot about this specific area and the forced relocation of over 60,000 blacks.  The relocation was a result of the Group Areas Act of 1950 (during apartheid), which assigned specific areas of land to each race (black, coloured, white, Indian).  People were required to carry around an identity card, specifying the racial group to which they belonged, thereby giving them permission to be in certain locations.  District 6 was an area populated by blacks prior to the Group Areas Act, but during apartheid was designated as a whites-only area, forcing non-Whites out of their homes.  They relocated to the Cape Flats, which are large housing projects that still suffer today from extreme poverty and gang violence.  This occurred in over 40 other districts, but District 6 was the largest district, with the highest number of residents forced to relocate.  The area was bulldozed and much of it remains undeveloped to this day.

During our trip to Robben Island, we learned more about some of the political prisoners during apartheid.  The island has been used as a prison for hundreds of years.  It began in the 1800s as a site for those with leprosy or mental illness.  During apartheid, it was used for criminals and political prisoners alike; however, political prisoners were subject to the worst punishment (it was the highest crime, in a sense).  Most political prisoners belonged to the Afrikan National Congress (ANC) party, who opposed apartheid and wanted to overthrow the white authority.  Robert Sobukwe split from the ANC and formed the Pan Afrikan Congress (PAC), also in opposition to apartheid.  Both the ANC and PAC were banned under apartheid rule.  Robert Sobukwe was imprisoned for three years and then held in solitary confinement on Robben Island for six years.  We were able to see his quarters and read several letters exchanged between he and his wife.  He was allowed more privileges than most because he was technically not in prison, but in solitary confinement; however, his wife and children were allowed to visit only a couple of times each year and he was allowed no communication with other prisoners on the island.  Another political prisoner on Robben Island was, of course, Nelson Mandela, a leader of the ANC.  We were able to see the cell where he was imprisoned on Robben Island for 18 of his 27 years in prison.  He was released in 1990 and subsequently became South Africa’s first democratic president in 1994.  We also saw the Limestone Quarry, where the political prisoners worked during the day to excavate limestone.  As educators, it was interesting to learn that they also used the Quarry as a site for passing knowledge on from prisoner to prisoner and teaching illiterate prisoners to read and write.  The perseverance of those prisoners is inspiring.

On Monday this week at UCT, we heard some student presentations that we had each prepared from our required reading.  We learned about many struggles in South Africa’s educational system, including unions and language differences.  Two guest speakers joined us to lecture on their experiences in schools and working to improve management and instruction.  One of the major issues in schools is discipline and I am curious to see if this is evident in my school next week.  Although the schools are technically “integrated” now that apartheid has ended, they remain racially divided for the most part.  Our study abroad will be teaching in mostly “coloured” schools.  Although the speakers gave a somewhat bleak view of the education system here, they also stressed the importance of the classroom as a “site of change” and the impact teachers have on shaping students and initiating social change and reconciliation through their students.

On Tuesday, we heard from author and educational leader Jonathan Jansen, whose book “Knowledge in the Blood” we read as part of our courses.  He had many interesting things to say about the difficulties South Africa has had with reconciliation since apartheid.  As the first black Dean of Education at the University of Pretoria (UP), he dealt with many cases of racial tension among young people.  It is fascinating how these students, who did not live through apartheid themselves, continue to hold strongly to the beliefs of their parents and perpetuate the racial issues that characterized apartheid.  Professor Jansen is now Principal of the University of the Free State and has been successful in transforming both universities to be more racially integrated and representative of post-apartheid ideals.  He also talked about the controversial “Reitz Four” students and his response to their racist video at his university.  We also heard from some other speakers about xenophobia (fear and violence against foreigners) since apartheid.  It was interesting and kind of scary to hear about xenophobic attacks as recently as 2008.

On Wednesday, we heard the last of our student presentations on issues such as fees in public schools, teacher education, decentralization, and integration within schools.  It is interesting to me that there is tuition for public schools here that is decided by each individual school.  In this sense, parents basically “buy” the level of education their students receive, which contributes further to continuing segregation in the education system.  We also heard from a Vice-Chancellor at the University of Cape Town who talked to us about challenges regarding young people in South Africa, expanding on Jonathan Jansen’s lecture.  One thing he said that seems to underlie the post-apartheid struggles in South Africa is that the past continues to occur in the present.  The country has not moved past apartheid socially and psychologically and I am anxious to see how this plays out as I become more involved in the community after moving in with my host family.

We had dinner at the church every day this week and it was so nice to have some traditional South African food cooked by Corvell’s mom.  One thing that we have found is that they sure love their lamb!  It is much less expensive than beef or pork here, so we have it a lot.  They also like a lot of curry and spicy foods... I am not a fan.  Hopefully that won’t be an issue with my host family.  Today we had a nice, relaxing day (a first!).  We visited a Children’s Center this morning and learned about their program for at-risk children.  Then we finally had a chance to do LAUNDRY!  It was strange because we took everything to a Laundromat, but instead of doing it yourself, you pay the workers there to wash, dry, and fold your laundry and then come back for it!  Since all 16 of us had laundry, there were a few sock exchanges after we got back, but I got all of my clothes back and it was nice to just pick it up!  We also went to the mall (again) while we waited and I picked up some yoga pants and a few shirts.  One of my old pair of jeans got a hole in the butt (not a good look), so I was down to one casual pair!  I didn’t bring enough clothes here!  Then we went to see Harry Potter tonight, which was a very big deal because we got to see it before our U.S. friends.  It’s a good one, but I haven’t read the book and there has been some controversial discussions at the guest house this evening!  Tomorrow we are back at UCT for our last day and I will get to meet a few of the teachers that work in my school.  Then we are off to Hermanus for a weekend trip and move in with our host families next week!  It will be a busy few days, but I’ll blog when I can!

I also posted some pictures on facebook at https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150253686012416.338336.568997415&l=e10e61996b.  You should be able to view them whether you have a facebook account or not.

Good night from South Africa,

Megan