The awards for the top teachers in the Western Cape followed a rigorous selection process, firstly in the province’s eight education districts, and then for the province as a whole.

The eight winners are now eligible for the National Teaching Awards to be announced by the national Department of Education later this year.

Yousuf Gabru, MEC for Education, and Ron Swartz, Head of Education in the Western Cape, presented the awards on Friday night.

Both paid tribute to the finalists and the award winners and said that they represented the many thousands of teachers in the province who are making a difference, despite difficult circumstances.

The winners of the 2008 Western Cape Teaching Awards, in their various categories, are:

* Excellence in Primary School Teaching

  Ms Karen du Plessis, Denneoord Primary School, George

* Excellence in Secondary School Teaching

  Ms Lorraine Kuun, Huguenot High School, Wellington

* Excellence in Early Childhood Development

  Ms Nomgcobo Mekuto, Phakamisane Primary School, Plettenberg Bay

* Excellence in Inclusive Education and Special Needs Teaching

  Ms Jennifer-Ann Daniels, St Joseph Home RC School, Montana

* Excellence in Primary School Leadership

  Mr Waldemar Kastoor, Parkview Primary School, Atlantis

* Excellence in Secondary School Leadership

  Mr Anthony Hess, Groenberg Secondary School, Grabouw

* Excellence in Adult Basic Education and Training

  Ms Christina Saaiman, Mossel Bay Community Learning Centre, Mossel Bay

* Lifetime Achievement Award

  Mr Bruce Niland, Rhenish Primary School, Stellenbosch

The following are profiles of the award winners

Excellence in Primary School Teaching

Ms Karen du Plessis

Denneoord Primary School, George

Ms Du Plessis has exemplary knowledge about her learning area, Mathematics. Her curriculum advisers in the district acknowledge her for her in-depth knowledge of the NCS, detailed planning and innovative strategies in the learning area, and her colleagues in her school and community endorse this.

As Learning Area head she does professional development and capacity building with her colleagues at the level of the school, as well as in the community. She accommodates the diverse needs of all learners, e.g. learners with physical challenges and special needs, by adapting learning, teaching and assessment strategies by using resources creatively and optimally.

Although Ms du Plessis is not part of the school management team she unselfishly engages in duties assigned to management teams, e.g. drafting of school timetables. She excels in co-curricular activities as well, for example, coordinating netball on school and provincial level.

Ms Du Plessis is compassionate and spearheads food and clothes drives to help care for less fortunate people in the community. She inspires learners, parents, colleagues and members of the community by being a role model in every sphere of life.

Excellence in Secondary School Teaching

Ms Lorraine Kuun

Huguenot High School, Wellington

Ms Lorraine Kuun is a dedicated Science Teacher, with outstanding subject knowledge. She is continuously upskilling herself and regards herself as a life-long learner.

She plays a leading role in her school, circuit and the district with regard to curriculum and community development.

As a member of the school management team she possesses strong leadership abilities and administrative skills.  Amongst other her responsibilities are examination arrangements, assessment, CTAs, curriculum-related issues and liaising with educator unions.

Her excellent skills and experience as a teacher have led her to become the co-writer of a series of textbooks for Life Sciences and Natural Sciences.

She is further involved in a number of extra-mural activities, e.g. coaching girls’ hockey teams and educator-co-ordinator for TABC (Teenagers against Breast Cancer) Campaign, amongst other activities.

For Ms Kuun teaching remains a calling.  She believes that she should be an example of a well-educated, emotionally mature, morally principled human being.  She further believes that she should not only prepare learners for the world of work, but also the challenges that learners might face.

This remarkable educator is really a positive advertisement for the teaching profession.

Excellence in Early Childhood Development

Ms Nomgcobo Mekuto

Phakamisane Primary School, Plettenberg Bay

Ms Nomgcobo Mekuto has a clear vision and strives for excellence in her work. She encourages greater parent involvement. She portrays the necessary commitment, dedication and love for her work.

She has developed her own learning programmes and lesson plans in the Foundation Phase. There is a significant improvement in the Literacy and Numeracy results over the past three years.

She is creative and resourceful, making use of the Khanya Computer Laboratory at her school.

Ms Mekuto has a wonderful rapport with learners, parents and colleagues.

Ms Mekuto is involved in the sub-committee of the Bitou 10 Foundation. She also assists with cultural activities, e.g. the choir and school plays. Her ongoing professional development is an inspiration to her colleagues to improve their own qualifications.

Excellence in Inclusive Education and Special Needs Teaching

Ms Jennifer-Ann Daniels

St Joseph Home RC School, Montana

It was Ms Daniels’ childhood dream to become a teacher and she is currently doing her BEd Honours degree.

She faces the impact and effects of social challenges, such as HIV and AIDS, substance abuse and mental handicaps on a daily basis. Her learners include those infected with HIV who are accommodated in the Sunflower ward situated on the premises of the school.

In her quest for quality teaching she adapts the curriculum for these young learners who are severely mentally handicapped and/or who are very ill. She draws up an Individual Education Development Programme for all learners to address their unique needs. In particular, she utilises a variety of learning support materials, such as the “Persona Dolls”.  She prepares her learners to cope in the outside world by teaching them life skills that will help them to become little entrepreneurs.

One of the senior curriculum planners has approached her to help develop a programme based on the NCS for severely mentally handicapped learners. She has also designed a sensory stimulation programme for 0 – 3-year-old children that she offers at crèches in the area. Her community involvement includes raining funds for needy learners and sending food parcels to needy families.

She is indeed an inspiration to learners, parents and colleagues!

Excellence in Primary School Leadership

Mr Waldemar Kastoor

Parkview Primary School, Atlantis

Mr Kastoor is a role model to his educators in terms of improving their qualifications and is currently busy with his MBA studies. He believes in inclusivity, transparency and maintains an open-door policy. He also believes in empowering the school governors to become more au fait with school policies.

He has succeeded in obtaining both local and international sponsorships to help alleviate poverty in the community and to address the challenge of inadequate resources at his school. The library was built with funding received from international sponsors and has become the hub of the school. The library is also made available to Adult Education and Training classes.

He has embarked on building bridges between learners of his school and learners abroad, e.g. Sweden and the UK. The aim is to broaden the horizons of the learners and improve their language abilities.

The schools literacy and numeracy results for Grade 3s have improved remarkably over the last 6 years.

Mr Kastoor encourages the spirit of giving in learners by involving them in vegetable gardening to provide for needy people in the community. He is passionate, God fearing and believes, despite what critics might say that teaching is a calling. Should he be awarded this prestigious award, he wishes to dedicate it to his staff for their perseverance and commitment and to his father, his role model.

Excellence in Secondary School Leadership

Mr Anthony Hess

Groenberg Secondary School, Grabouw

Mr Anthony Hess is a dedicated school manager who has a long and distinguished service record.  Thorough planning and good time management characterise his leadership.  As manager and leader of Groenberg Secondary School, he is dependable, honest, diligent and purposeful.

Mr Hess’ loyalty to the school and his contribution towards cultivating a culture of quality teaching and learning in the school are highly commendable.

His vision for the school is to establish and maintain a school of excellence to the benefit all learners, staff members and the community in general, despite the fact that the school serves a disadvantaged community and the needs of the poorest of the poor.

Under Mr Hess’ leadership the school has developed progressively over the last ten years.  This includes establishing a seminar lecture room (seating 60 people);  two Khanya computer labs;  a mindset programme for Maths;  and a Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Room.

Groenberg has been identified as an Engineering Focus School and has completed the Engineering Focus Centre, with provision for rooms for Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Civil Engineering and Engineering Graphics and Design.

The school recently completed a new and refurbished Media Centre with Internet connectivity, and fax and e-mail facilities that will be made available to the whole community.

The school has established a mutually beneficial partnership with an overseas school, Birchwood College, in Warrington, England.

Most of the school’s facilities are made available to the broader community, such as community organisations, NGOs and government agencies.

Under Mr. Hess’s outstanding leadership, all role-players have taken ownership of the school and the school has moved from strength to strength.

Despite all these achievements, Mr Hess remains a humble person and shows a willingness to share his expertise with those less fortunate.

Excellence in Adult Basic Education and Training

Ms Christina Saaiman

Mossel Bay Community Learning Centre, Mossel Bay

Ms Christina Saaiman is a 61-year-old qualified, experienced mainstream educator, who also completed her ABET Certificate in 2001. Ms Saaiman is also a qualified assessor and has completed various other skills courses.

She is not only involved in the learner’s academic education and upliftment, but also plays an anchor role in their social and religious development.  She is indeed a woman of sublime courage and passionate faith.

Ms Saaiman is an asset to education and an ambassador for the Learning Centre and the WCED.  As site-co-ordinator of the centre, she is responsible for and is involved in the collective planning of the Centre.  She is part of the ABET Moderation Team of the George cluster.  She is also the partnership co-ordinator responsible for encouraging external institutions to became partners with ABET.

Lifetime Achievement Award

Mr Bruce Niland

Rhenish Primary School, Stellenbosch

Mr Niland is a seasoned educator with more than 38 years of experience as an educator.

He was appointed at Rhenish Primary School 24 years ago and has led the school into becoming one of the most respected schools in the Cape Peninsula. He is, without a doubt, one of the most knowledgeable principals regarding Outcomes-based Education.

He is a man of absolute integrity and character who believes that the children and their education come first. His work ethic is beyond reproach and he expects the staff to work hard and tirelessly, for the improvement of education.

One of his recent special achievements include the school being awarded first place for Numeracy at the Western Cape Special Awards for Primary Schools, based on the results of the WCED’s diagnostic tests from 2003 to 2007.

The school also received a rating of “Good” for literacy (English First Language). This is particularly noteworthy given the linguistic context of his school, which is situated in Stellenbosch, a predominantly Afrikaans environment, and which caters for a large number of foreign (non English-speaking) learners, whose parents are in some way affiliated to the University of Stellenbosch.

Mr Niland’s approach to the holistic development of the learners includes music and sporting ties with Idas Valley Primary school; an English/Afrikaans day with neighbouring school, Laerskool Eikestad; inter-change with George Town Day School in Washington DC, USA, including educators and learners; and the co-ordination of a month-long visit to schools in Washington DC, USA with a team of four educators from previously disadvantaged schools.