2 learners amaze with a Rally-to-Read win

TWO learners from Babangu Primary School in Ndhengeza village, Giyani, gave their English teacher a pleasant surprise when they emerged as some of the top learners in a Rally-to-Read competition involving 12 schools around Manómbe circuit recently.

Lwandle Maluleke and Thembani Mhuntani each received 31 marks out of 40 in a competition that involved writing and reading.

Lwandle finished in first place followed by Thembani. The competition required that each school allowed its top three gr. 5 learners to compete through reading and writing as a way of promoting readership skills among learners in rural areas.

The two learners’ teacher, Flora Maswanganyi, was very happy and said the children had surprised her. “I never thought they would perform the way they did, especially in front of a large crowd,” she said.

Maswanganyi said the two learners were very bright, and were always ahead of the others when it came to their marks. “They are the kind of learners who do not fail tests,” she said.

Man’ombe circuit manager, Steven Maringa, said the reading projects initiated by Rally-to-Read were helpful. “If we could all adopt their methodology of teaching, we can perform far better than we do now. I know that some teachers would say it increases their load of work, but this is the only way if one wants to get better results,” he said.

Rally-to-Read is a non-government organisation that promotes readership in rural schools through read and write projects that are boosted with the supply of study and reading material for learners and teachers.