By Sizwe T. Nxumalo
I recently found out about the Inspired Teachers Conference taking place in my city. It is a conference for education practitioners and other stakeholders to discuss different aspects of education reform in SA. The list of speakers is both interesting and impressive and includes the much revered Prof. Jonathan Jansen. Given my disposition, I was obviously excited at the prospect of attending this conference, even if it meant missing a whole day of lectures – a small price to pay. But then the most unlikely thing happened: I was actually invited to be a panelist for one of the discussions in the conference.
Now the details of how the conference organiser came to find out about me, or decide that I’d be a good speaker are still sketchy. But the point is, here was this awesome opportunity to not only attend the conference and meet some of the thought leaders in the field of education, but also to inform the discussion and hopefully give some educators some insight into possible strategies for attaining greater engagement amongst their learners.
My first reaction was to completely disqualify myself as being a sound choice to sit amongst thought leaders and address a conference of experienced educators and parents who are much older and far more experienced. But after giving it some serious thought, I decided to accept the invitation to be a panelist. My acceptance wasn’t fueled by any delusions about my being a thought leader nor a messiah complex about my being destined to save SA from its education crisis. But rather, it came from the realization that my analyzed and unique journey through life, school and university held some potentially valuable insights for any parent or educator interested in creating environments that are fun and engaging without necessarily undermining academic value.
Now, my intention is not to offer any scientifically based conclusions – I haven’t done the research; nor is it to make claims of the “snake oil” variety about what is required to make learners more engaged – I am both aware and humble about things that I do not know. But rather, my intention is to share the things that my educators did that made mw more engaged as student, and to share stories of alternative methods that I’ve tried with my own learners that have had positive results. This simple acknowledgement of the value inherent in the aspects of my life that I have reflected on continuously, gave me the confidence and resolve to address a conference of professionals that I respect and one day hope to call my peers.
Mission Complete: Ignition Project Training Retreat
The Ignition Project is a three-step process that begins with the Ignition Project Training Retreat (which we fondly call the IPTR). At this weekend-long retreat, enke works with university-aged students connecting them with a diverse, active network of fellow change-makers, equipping them with skills and experience to increase their employability, and inspiring them to entrepreneurial thinking to lead change in their communities.
From the enke perspective, our job is to ensure that these students would walk into the weekend as participants and leave as enke: Facilitators.
In Cape Town we were at the luxurious Best Western Cape Suites with the table mountain towering above us, and in Johannesburg we were at Hotel Lamunu right in the hustle and bustle of Braamfontein life.
As we were lost in our thoughts regarding to the task we were about to undertake, it soon became very clear that it wasn’t a matter of whether the participants were ready for us, rather it was about whether WE were ready for THEM.
How did we find these people??? Don’t get me wrong, our interview processes were designed to ensure we got the cream of the crop – but I don’t think even we were fully aware of the how amazing these students would be. The emotional intelligence, enthusiasm, determination and energy that the Ignition Project participants (now enke: Facilitators) brought to the weekend was truly a force to be reckoned with.
It hasn’t been an easy task to wrap our heads around what exactly happened over these past two weekends. As our CEO Pip said after Cape Town, we needed “a whole day to process the awesomeness of the weekend just past.” The facilitators inspired us with their enthusiasm, their openness to learn, their ability to understand and finally their drive towards success in their very own project – the Innovation Roadshow.
To put it mildly, the Ignition Project Training Retreat was a stunning success, from flawless backstage scheduling, to the amazing Presenter team, to the highly capable Facilitator team.
I think I speak for the rest of the enke Team when I say we are definitely excited to see our Facilitators in action in the next few months!