PHAKAMISA is pronounced pa-ga-mee-sa.
A Zulu word meaning 'to uplift.'

EDUCARE

PHAKAMISA providing a sound foundation for pre-school children who otherwise would not be adequately prepared for formal education.

A POSITIVE START

SOMETHING NEW

Thuli dropped out of school from Grade 8 when she was 13 years old, she went to help her mum ( a Phakamisa graduate) who was working in a Methodist church creche, and was soon sent to Phakamisa to enrol on our 6 month Child Minder course.

Thuli returned a year later for the Educare course and alongside this she completed her high school credits. Certified by the government to assist at Grade R (pre-school) level Thuli returned to share supervisions at the Methodist creche and alongside work, entered college. Last year Thuli completed her Bachelor's in Education at the University of KwaZulu-Natal and plans to begin her Honors work in Early Child Psycholoy.

Thuli keeps track of her former students and last year attended awards ceremonies for two of them who where finishing Grade 9. One received Top Student in her class, the other 'Best Learner'.

Thuli says about herself: 'I never thought I could be something good, something perfect to someone else'.

And about Phakamisa: 'It makes the best, out of nothing'.

FILM – EDUCARE TRAINING

Phakamisa Educare and Childminder Courses offer basic practical training for people from dis-advantaged backgrounds.

In this clip of film Elaine one of our Educare Trainers demonstrates to students how to tell the under 3’s a story in an engaging and educational way.

As part of the course students are taught how to make story aids from waste materials – cereal packets, boxes, cartons etc.

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‘Education is the most powerful weapon you can use to change the world’ – Nelson Mandela.

Help us educate and change the world.

Phakamisa annually trains 250 educare workers enabling 10,000 children to receive a sound pre-school education.

Phakamisa's wandering teachers provide a free pre-school education to children who live in poverty.

EDUCARE

Each year we train 250 people working in Educare Centres

An Educare Centre is a facility that offers education and care to children of 0-6 years.
These facilities are found in churches, community halls, people’s homes or even under trees.
Training for Educare workers is offered from PHAKAMISA ,based at Pinetown Methodist Church, with most people living within a 50km radius of Pinetown.
Our Educare teachers are all from very impoverished communities and have had an inferior education themselves.
Our 1 year Educare Course and 6 month Childminder’s Course offer practical, hands-on training, covering all the necessary concepts required to provide a sound foundation for formal education. Rhythm, rhyme, music, games, story telling, creative play, active learning, respect & care, are integral parts of the courses.
Manufactured equipment – such as story books, jigsaws, puzzles, games, and toys - are too expensive for most Educare Centres unless they have been fortunate enough to receive donations of second hand items at PHAKAMISA. So students learn how to create teaching aids, games, puzzles and musical instruments from waste. We collect and use cereal packets, boxes, plastic cartons, bottles, etc, to make them.

Over the past 18 years we have trained over 4,000 Educare teachers. 10,000 children benefit directly from our Educare programme. These children would otherwise not be adequately prepared for formal education.

WANDERING TEACHERS

PHAKAMISA works in poor communities and in the informal settlements where homes are shacks with no access to basic services.
The unofficial AIDS infection rate in these areas is 1 in 2. AIDS continues to have a devastating effect on the whole social system.

PHAKAMISA employs 3 Wandering Teachers (Phakamisa trained) who provide a free education to children living in informal settlements. These destitute children receive a sound education and loving care.

Our Wandering Teachers are dedicated amazing women, working in challenging environments, whose priority is the care and education of their children. They teach children from informal settlements who would otherwise not receive a pre-school education. There are up to 40 children in each school and no extra help, it is testament to the skill of the teachers that their students are attentive, respectful and enjoy both learning and playing in a structured environment.