Day 25 - University of the Free State & School Visit

Sunny, but chilly good morning to you as we venture to the University of the Free State. Today we meet with our guide Andre and some guest lectures from the university who wanted to share some of the organization that the university level follows.

There'd are around 300 grade level schools in the area, so the university being established was simply to meet the needs of the many children in the area. In the late 1970's the university lectures began around 5pm because the university was trying to meet the needs of educational staff who couldn't make it until the evening. The majority of the students here speak Zulu, but classes/lectures are done in English.

The university offers students who can't quite meet the test scores the ability to get into the university, but with some assistance throughout the tenure they serve within the campus.




The school we visit today is from grade 10 and 12. The subjects they teach are mathematics, life orientation, first language (Sesotho, English), physical science, biology, economies, geography, and history.

The school systems here run on what the educators refer to as phases. The are three total:
1.Foundation phase grades one to three, they focus on three learning areas.
2.Intermediate phase grades four to six, they focus on seven learning areas.
3.Senior phase, grads seven through nine.

There are two types of educators within the school system, school based and office based. School based are the ones who teach in the classes, the Office based are the ones who travel to different school to help assist teacher sin running their subjects, help with special needs, and to help with programs. The is also a Director who oversees every school in the district who deals with HR, examinations, curriculum, and everyday issues.

It was really interesting because one of the speakers today who is the head of the education department here on campus mentioned that they are struggling to find good educators for the grade level school and there have been recorded examinations where the students scored a higher score than their teacher. Teachers salaries don't vary either, they are the same across the board for every government sponsored school based on yearly experience.

In the evening, Andre invited us to his house for tea and wine which was lovely. We all had a great time :)


- With all my thanks :)

Location:QwaQwa, Lesotho