South Africa:Thinking Back, Looking Forward By Dr. Debby Chessin

art of the joy of experiencing the wonders of a new

place is sharing it with others – in my case, with other students

and teachers in the summer of 2007 in Port Elizabeth, South

Africa. We connected with the wonderfully friendly and support-

ive faculty, staff, and students of Nelson Mandela Metropolitan

University (NMMU) and shared 3 intense weeks of classes, ex-

ploration, and living as South Africans in the “Friendly City”

of the “Rainbow Nation.” As I think back and read over my

journals to revive the memories, I find myself looking forward

to reconnecting with my South African friends and extending

the understandings and impressions gained that summer. I hope

you will join me in 2008 for a Study Abroad trip that will stay

with you forever as my memories will be with me.

In the field of education, we strive to learn about, better

appreciate, and meet the needs of diverse groups of people

in the classroom. An effective way to meet this broad goal

is to get to know individuals and their specific cultures and

understand the interrelationship between their history and

current culture, what they believe and why, who they ad-

mire, and the infinite ways they go about their everyday

lives.

In South Africa, our experiences far surpassed our

expectations even though we prepared, read articles, and

visited many informative websites. It’s true when they say,

“You had to be there!” On the NMMU campus, we were

greeted by Zulu drummers and singers and many cute little

monkeys that roam wild on campus — adorable but they

will steal food right out of your hand! After orientation,

we took a cultural tour of Port Elizabeth and the surround-

ing area to learn how the history of the region influenced

people’s lives today. The rich ethnographic history of

South Africa and the remarkable diversity of people today

is reflected in the fact that there are 11 official languages.

The “townships” are a remnant of Apartheid society where

Blacks were housed in nothing more than ramshackle

dwellings and shipping containers. In a tribute to the Town-

ship Riots of 1985, we visited the Red Museum which pro

vided a tribute and elegant reminder of the people and their

struggle.

From there, we toasted with a group of locals at

Kwe Kwe’s “Shabeen” (bar), shared packages of “crisps”

(chips), insights on their history and its effect on business

and industry, and the residual affects on their everyday

lives. On the way back to our apartment, small groups of

children ran alongside the van, and we shared the common

language of “thumbs up” and big smiles!

Visits to local schools, arranged by the faculty and

staff of NMMU, provided a rewarding and exciting focus

during the next few weeks. We discovered that the faculty,

staff, and students

were just as excited to

meet and learn more

about us as Ameri-

cans! Setting out with

a map and directions,

driving in South Afri-

ca proved to be a little

challenging - driving

on the “wrong” side

of the road with the

steering wheel on the

“wrong” side of the

car was one obstacle.

We learned quickly

that a “bakkie” is a

pickup truck, a “boot”

is the trunk of the car,

“petrol” is gas, a “robot” is a traffic light, and a “koppie”

means a rocky hill!

The first school visit was to a public, Christian,

“ex-Model C” school that housed grades 1-7. “Model C”

schools were private schools for whites in South Africa

during Apartheid, which ended in 1994. Most of the stu-

dents there today were black, Indian, or coloured (a term

for mixed race but not considered derogatory in South

Africa) and most of the teachers were White — a situa-

tion which led to some thought-provoking discussion. As a

school in transitional culture, there still seemed to be plenty of

room and desire for making more positive connections among

people.

Several teachers were absent so we optimistically and

enthusiastically agreed to each take our own class for a day.

Lessons were sidelined by a lively cultural exchange which

included a funny, revealing question and answer period, a

dance contest, and a folk-tale telling session. In this school

English was primarily spoken, yet all the students were fluent

in at least Khosa, Afrikaans, or Zulu. We invited them to write

and illustrate letters to an imaginary friend in America describ-

ing themselves, their families, and what they enjoy doing after

school while we treated

them with a pizza party,

and chocolate cookies

we baked the night be-

fore and distributed much

needed books, paper, and

crayons from home.

Next we went to a

local “coloured” school

where the students and

faculty alike were almost

all “coloured.” Here, the

students were supposed

to be taught in English

but many were more flu-

ent in Afrikaans, Khosa,

or Zulu and thus given

special accommodations.

We enjoyed reading with small groups of children and helping

them on the computers that were donated by local businesses

and industries. The teachers brought a fantastic potluck lunch

— which included unusual and delicious native recipes — and

we enjoyed talking with them about their educational views and

their lives since Apartheid. The buildings and grounds were

less than modern and needed some major repairs and improve-

ments, but the warmth and high level of quality educational

practices within the classroom walls were the most obvious fea-

ture of this school.

The third and last public school we visited was in the

township that served the most poor, rural population in this area,

and we were required to have a driver who knew the area well

to escort us to and from the school. We were told that it was not

so much an issue of danger, but that the roads were difficult to

travel and directions were confusing. To our utter surprise, the

children spoke only Xhosa! This language has no resemblance

to English and the numerous clicks made it almost impossible

for us to successfully repeat words in our eagerness to learn

their language. We communicated through facial expressions,

acting things out, and

drawing — and the chil-

dren were delightful and

very friendly. It was dif-

ficult to see the rundown

condition of their school

and to see them cleaning

out their own dilapidated

bathroom barefoot.

On the weekends,

we had several wonderful

opportunities to observe

the South African wildlife

in their natural environ-

ment— we were amazed

at how close we could get

to large herds of huge el-

ephants — one baby got

too close to the jeep in her

zeal to find a nice prickly

bush to eat and actually trumpeted at us in a warning that was

more sweet than scary! The giraffes seemed to float above the

trees and were just beautiful with their giant liquid eyes and

huge curly eyelashes. Zebras at the waterhole blended into one

another in an abundance of stripes, legs, and head at various

angles. We actually “hunted” for the lions at night and found a

resting family with disarmingly calm expressions — occasion-

ally, the male and female would play a little wrestling game.

A whale watching trip was an amazing experience

where one lively specimen was apparently putting on a

show for us flapping her tail, swimming around the boat,

then ending her display in a big noisy breach with flippers

waving goodbye! The whales were kept company by South

African penguins and a small group of whiskered, playful

seals.

Can you envision yourself studying in South Af-

rica this summer? Did I mention our apartment building

was right on the beach and only a short side-trip from Cape

Town and the beauti-

ful Garden Route or

Jeffries Bay — home

to the international

surfing championships

while we were in town.

It’s a 10-minute walk

from our apartments

to the Internet café and

small shopping mall, a

huge variety of restau-

rants and entertaining

nightspots, open-air

African craft markets

and native dance per-

formances on the

boardwalk. Are you

ready to try some bil-

tong, babotie, boere-

wors, or bredie, or a

braii? Treat yourself to a four-course meal with dessert in

a great restaurant overlooking the Indian Ocean and you

probably won’t spend over $15.00! Just remember the

Zulu word for “hello” is “sawubona” and “goodbye” is

“sala kahle” and you’ll fit right in. Let’s face it, location

is everything — South Africa is simply a fantastic place to

learn and relax and I look forward to taking you there with

me this summer!