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Some of the family members of the 2023 matriculants who are sitting for their final exams did not have an opportunity to go to university. Hence, several of these youngsters’ key focus is to break this cycle in their families. Their purpose is to ensure that none of their family members who will be born after them will end their studies only in Grade 12, but go beyond that level.
This is the daily prayer of two youngsters who are part of the Bukho Bami Youth Centre in Dobsonville, Soweto, Olona Klaas and Loyiso Modisane. They are among thousands of Grade 12 pupils who are currently writing their final exams countrywide.
Klaas and Modisane, who are Grade 12 pupils at George Khosa Secondary School in Dobsonville, dream not only for a better future for themselves but also for future generations in their families.
They explained to City Press that it had been the norm for their family members to only study up to matric, but not beyond. Therefore, as they write their matric exams, they are driven by these words: “this curse ends with me”.
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Klaas and Modisane have been provisionally accepted at South Africa’s renowned universities, the University of Cape Town and the University of Western Cape. Therefore, they are adamant that they will excel with flying colours in their final exams to gain full acceptance at the universities.
Klaas is aiming for seven distinctions with an average of 92%, and Modisane five to seven distinctions. This means that next year, they are certain that they will unlock the doors of universities for themselves and their future generations.
Klaas, who wants to study computer sciences, majoring in applied maths, said:
Modisane said: “I am going to be the first one to go to university in my family and the first to be an economist. I feel proud because I am going to make my family proud. They (my family) want me to concentrate on my studies and to focus because this is the only way to succeed.”
Although Modisane envisions himself as a future economist, he also sees himself as a potential teacher “because I love sharing my knowledge with other people”.
Being enrolled at Bukho Bami, a youth development and empowerment facility, is assisting them to work towards achieving their vision.
Bukho Bami was founded by seasoned journalist, businesswoman, musician and former spokesperson for the department of transport, Ayanda Allie.
Allie said:
She added: “Bukho Bami Youth Centre works to disrupt that cycle by creating a safe after-school environment that is conducive towards learning. We strive to help our teenagers access opportunities and turn those opportunities into success. In doing so, Bukho Bami aims to transform society one child at a time. To date, many of our alumni have gone on to become the first university entrants in their families and are now giving back to their community.”
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Allie explained that as with every year, Bukho Bami aimed for a 100% pass rate for its matric pupils.
“Over the past eight years of our existence, we have been blessed to achieve this target and where we have fallen short, we have never dipped below a 95% pass rate. Tutors at Bukho Bami treat each learner as an individual. That means that the tutors take time to understand each child’s learning abilities, learning styles and other behaviours and characteristics. This understanding of the child enables the tutor to adapt or tailor make their teaching methods to meet the learner at the point of his or her need.”
Modisane and Klaas said load shedding had been a challenge in their studies because it sometimes deterred them from studying overnight. But they were able to overcome such challenges by using candles to study, charging their lights and structuring their study timetable according to the load shedding schedule.
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Directing her message to her peers and those below Grade 12, Klaas said: “I’d like to tell them that they can do it, no matter the circumstances. It does not matter the situation in their lives; they should be hard workers. They should be persistent and if they are believers, they should pray hard and work hard. That’s how success will reach them. They won’t reach success, but success will come to them.”
