A township teacher came out on top in Apple's annual iTeacher competition, defeating a number of teachers from private schools.
Lindiwe Mawela, from Gugulesizwe Primary School, has won the iTeacher award, at the Apple in Education Awards.
According to Kirsten Wiggill, from Core Group, the value added distributor for Apple in Southern Africa, the iTeacher award is given every year to a teacher who has demonstrated how Apple technology can improve and streamline education.
"The annual Apple in Education competition recognises and awards teachers and learners who have created innovative, curriculum-relevant projects using Apple technology to enhance teaching and learning," says Wiggill.
More than 700 entries from primary and high schools across the country were received this year and finalists in the iTeacher category included Parklands College, Dainfern College, Redhill Prep School and Gugulesizwe Primary School. Mawela won the award by illustrating the process of how she uses iPads and apps as the primary tool to shift the learners communicating in their mother tongue to English, says Wiggill.
Mawela started teaching at the school in 1992, which is a non-fee paying school in Daveytown township, where classrooms average 45 students per class. She was introduced to the iSchoolAfrica iPad learning programme in 2011, an initiative developed by Core Group that aims to empower teachers and students by giving them access to educational technology.
"I am so excited to receive the iTeacher award, especially with so many entries from private schools," says Mawela. "iPads have not only changed the way I teach, but also the way our students learn. All the parents in the neighbourhood want their children to come to our school to use iPads. We aren't just another township school anymore; we are the school that everybody wants to come to."
While a number of initiatives aim to improve education through the use of technology, it seems SA still has a long way to go. In August, a 2012/13 report delivered at a basic education portfolio committee meeting showed that less than 18% of schools are ICT-connected for teaching and learning purposes.
It was also revealed that the number of schools with ICT infrastructure, specifically for teaching and learning, has declined from 26.5% in 2002 to 24% in 2011.
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