Hola MaHigh-School - May 2021

Hola

MaHighSchool Volume 10, Issue 5, May 2021

. . . s e g a u g n a l y n ? a m m e h t So e s u e w o d t u B

LATEST AMENDED 2021 SCHOOL CALENDAR

January 2021 S

3 10 17 24

M

4 11 18 25

T

5 12 19 26

W

6 13 20 27

T

7 14 21 28

February 2021 F

S

1

2

8 15 22 29

9 16 23 30

F

S

S

M

T

W

T

F

S

1

2

3

4

5

6

7 14 21 28

8 15 22

9 16 23

10 17 24

11 18 25

12 19 26

13 20 27

S

M

T

31 April 2021 S

4 11 18 25

M

5 12 19 26

T

6 13 20 27

W

7 14 21 28

T

May 2021

1

2

3

8 15 22 29

9 16 23 30

10 17 24

4 11 18 25

M

5 12 19 26

T

6 13 20 27

W

7 14 21 28

2 9 16 23

3 10 17 24

30

31

3 10 17 24

M

4 11 18 25

T

5 12 19 26

S

S

M

4 11 18 25

5 12 19 26

6 13 20 27

7 14 21 28

8 15 22 29

F

S

T

W

T

F

S

1

2

3

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8 15 22 29

9 16 23 30

10 17 24 31

8 15 22 29

9 16 23 30

10 17 24 31

11 18 25

12 19 26

13 20 27

14 21 28

F

S

S

M

W

6 13 20 27

F

August 2021 T

October 2021 S

T

1

July 2021 S

W

T

7 14 21 28

November 2021 1

2

8 15 22 29

9 16 23 30

7 14 21 28

T

W

T

F

S

1

2

3

4

5

6

8 15 22 29

9 16 23 30

10 17 24

11 18 25

12 19 26

13 20 27

31 Duration

No. of weeks

(25 January) (01) 15 February – 23 April

(13)(12)10

(65

03 May – 09 July

10

50

26 July – 01 October

10

50

11 October

10

48 (

(43)(42)40

(21

Total

– 15 (15) December

No.

March 2021 S

M

T

W

T

F

1

2

3

4

5

6

7 14 21 28

8 15 22 29

9 16 23 30

10 17 24 31

11 18 25

12 19 26

13 20 27

S

M

T

F

S

June 2021

6 13 20 27

7 14 21 28

W

T

1

2

3

4

5

8 15 22 29

9 16 23 30

10 17 24

11 18 25

12 19 26

September 2021 S

5 12 19 26

M

6 13 20 27

T

7 14 21 28

W

T

F

S

1

2

3

4

8 15 22 29

9 16 23 30

10 17 24

11 18 25

December 2021 S

M

T

W

1

2

3

4

5 12 19 26

6 13 20 27

7 14 21 28

8 15 22 29

9 16 23 30

10 17 24 31

11 18 25

. of days

5)(60)50

(48)

13)(208)198

T

F

Weekends

S

S

Days for administration School days Public holidays School holidays Public and School Holidays 2021 01 January

New Year’s Day

21 March

Human Rights Day

22 March

Public holiday

02 April

Good Friday

05 April

Family Day

27 April

Freedom Day

01 May

Workers’ Day

16 June

Youth Day

09 August

National Women’s Day

24 September

Heritage Day

16 December

Day of Reconciliation

25 December

Christmas Day

26 December

Day of Goodwill

27 December

Public holiday

No. of public holidays

Actual no. of school days

3

(62)(57)47

1

49

2

48

00

(48)48

6

(207)(202)192

e t n o C e l b Ta of

Editor’s Letter

06

Contributors

10

Holler at us

11

Languages - let’s talk

12

Poem of the Month

13

Writing in SePedi

14

Mother tongue in education 16 Braille is a language

22

Sign language is as well

24

It is complicated!

26

ent

May 2021

Centre of Specialisation

30

What does a district do?

36

The One: be inspired

42

Olympics - Tokyo 2021

46

Science: what’s new

50

It is movie-time

54

Music - Mother tongue

56

Month of June

58

We need writers

60

Next issue

62

Sybil Otterstrom Editor and CEO

Languages! we have so many, but are we really capable of using them?

It is easy to chat along with family in our ‘home language’ but can we write in it and even use it in school?

These are ‘good questions’ which touches us all. Culture and tradition all goes in the pot as well.

So, we are looking into all of this and .. yes, we have an article in one of our official languages (not gonna’ tell - lol).

We have industry views as well: TVET news and a view on a district office.

Lots of things I never knew.

And the fun part: music, movies and more.

Good Read!

Sybil

Tshwane South Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Do you youhave havea aGrade Grade 9 certificate or higher?

Have decided Do 9 certificate orEducation higher?

Have you you decided College operating under the Department of Higher and which career path to follow?

Training thepath fourthto largest TVET College in terms of enrolwhichbecame career follow? ments in 2018.

Over and above that thethe College managed to attainVocational - NC (V) and Well choose National Certificate Well don’t don’tlook lookany anyfurther further choose the National Certificate Vocational - NC(V) the fifth rank in the 2019 T119 national results.

The College was also start studying for your career path? and start studying for your career path.for the fields of Meselected as one of the Centres of Specialisation chanical Fitter, and Fitting and Turning, Electrician, Boilermaking and What is National Certificate Vocational NC(V)?

Millwright 2017.

What isinNational Certificate Vocational (NCV)?

TheNational NationalCertificate Certificate Vocational NC(V) is aand new and modern qualification The Vocational (NCV) is a new modern qualification offered

Employing ±470 staff TVET members, theTVET College aims to2007. equip students offered at Tshwane South College since offered at Tshwane South College since January It isJanuary offered at2007.

LevelsIt2,is3 and 4 with the skills required by the job market and has Alumni that work of National Framework are equivalent to Grades 10, 11 and at the Levels 2, 3Qualifications and 4 of the Nationalwhich Qualifications Framework which are for renowned Engineering companies like WBHO, to name but a few.

12.

It is regarded as one of quality andas high knowledge pro- skills, equivalent to Grades 10,the 11high andskills, 12. Ithigh is regarded one of the high grammes that provides experience of the workplace environment and is intended toof high quality and high knowledge programmes that provides experience Under the auspices of Department of Higher Education Training, the directly respond to the priority.

This qualification will also provide you an opportunithe workplace environment and is intended to 9directly College targets learners who have completed their Grade to 11 forrespond to the priority. ty to be admitted higher studies is subject appropriate NC (V) courses as wellatas learners who haveyou completed their Gradetoto 12be This qualification will alsoeducation provide an that opportunity admitted subject at higher combination. for NATED/Report 191 programmes. education studies that is subject to appropriate subject combination.

Duration of the qualification: The College offers Report 191 programmes N1 to N6 in Mechanical, Duration of the qualification: Civil and Electrical Engineering, N4 to N6 Management Assistant, FiNCV isManagement aisthree yearyear qualification offered at 2, 3inand Each4.level takes a full NC(V) a three qualification offered Levels 2, 4.

3 and Each level takes nancial and Hospitality Studies.

NCLevels (V)atL2-L4 Electrical year of study.

A student is issued with a certificate on the successful completion of a full year Construction, of study. A Engineering student isand issued with a certificate Infrastructure Related Design, Informa- on the successful each level of of study. tion Technology, Tourism, Officeof Administration, Civil Construction and completion each level study.

Hospitality. Learnerships are also offered at the College.

At TSC TVET we offer the following NC(V) programmes: At TSC TVET we offer the following NC (V) programmes:

Tshwane South TVET Currently comprises of the following Campuses: Atteridgeville, Centurion, •• Finance, Finance, Economicsand andAccounting Accounting Economics Odi and Pretoria West.

•• Office Office Administration Administration • Information Technology Computer Scienceskills of its Hospitality students The College’s campus in Centurion isand famed for the Science culinary • Information Technology and Computer •• Civil Civil Engineering Building Construction and for having the best machinery for practical engineering training workshops. Atteridgeville Engineering & &Building Construction •• Electrical Electrical Infrastructure Construction Campus is known for its Civil Engineering.

Pretoria Infrastructure Construction West is offering Engineering for both Report 191 and Engineering NC (V) andand hasand been identified as an Engineering Report 191 and for Engineering and IT •• Engineering Related Design Related Design courses.

The Odi campus, in Mabopane, is acclaimed for its NC (V) Tourism Programme.

•• Hospitality Hospitality •• Tourism Tourism

Want to be part of the fourth industrial revolution let TSC TVET assist you to achieve the future!

LIL\17619086

COURSES OFFERED AT TSHWANE SOUTH TVET COLLEGE NATIONAL CERTIFICATE VOCATIONAL *L2 - L4 : • • • • • • • •

Tourism Hospitality Information Technology & Computer Science Civil Engineering & Building Construction Electrical Infrastructure Construction Engineering & Related Design Office Administration Finance Economics & Accounting

PRE LEARNING PROGRAMME • PLP – Pre Learning Programme (NEW)

REPORT 191: GENERAL STUDIES *N4 - N6 : • Intro Business Studies N4 • Intro Catering services N4 • Management Assistant • Financial Management • Hospitality Studies

REPORT 191: NATURAL SCIENCE (ENGENEERING STUDIES)

*N4 - N6 :

• Electrical, Mechanical & Civil Engineering

SKILLS PROGRAMME • • • •

Clothing Production Artisan Training Gandhi – Mandela Centre of Specialisation for Artisan Skills (NEW) Centre of Specialisation for tting & turning (NEW)

LEARNERSHIP • Early Childhood Development • Community House Building • Building and Civil Construction CAMPUS CONTACT DETAILS:

General Enquiries: 012 401 5000 Atteridgeville: 012 373 1200 Centurion: 012 660 8500/1 Pretoria West: 012 380 5000 Odi: 012 725 1800

Tshwane South TVET College has been selected as one of the Centres of Specialisation for the elds of Mechanical Fitter and Fitter & Turning.

FOR MORE INFORMATION VISIT : www.tsc.edu.za

FOLLOW US: @OfficialTshwaneSouthCollege/ @tsc_tvet @tsc_tvet

Meet our contributors Masiziba Hadebe is doing her Master’s Agricultural Economics at the University of the Free State (UFS). She is driven to make a change and is a passionate volunteer for community projects. She loves reading and writing about science, agriculture and anything in between. She believes you can wear a smile whatever the weather!

I am Marcia Ramodike from Limpopo Tzaneen at lenyenye. I am an author when not studying. I am passionate about writing and i live to give hope and wish to change the world. I love reading and in most of my time i write. My favourite book is ‘Her Mothers Hope by Francine Rivers.

My name is Molatelo Kate Kgatla, I’m 24 years old. I was born and raised in Lenyenye. I’m a grade 2 teacher at Vunza Teddy Bear Learning Academy, an author of a book titled her jouney as a young mother. I became a mother at 17. It influenced me to write about my personal journey to try and help someone that could be going through the same. I love writing and I love my 7 year old daughter and life.

Lesly Malose Mahapa is a singer/writer/poet. He started writing at the age of 14 and has since been on a journey to pursue his music and writing career. Lesly is currently working with an indie group ‘MozSouth’ based in Ivory park, Midrand. Lesly is also a brand ambassador for a local clothing line “Boi Boi apparel”

HOLLER AT US MaHigh-School The stuff we need to mention:

Website www.romele.co.za

Editor & Publisher Sybil Otterstrom sybil@romele.co.za Advertising sales Next level Management services cc 011 614 5046 076 360 1792 sybil@next-level.co.za Publishing Romele Publications cc 32 Eleanor street Troyeville 2094 011 614 5046/076 360 1792

facebook.com/ holamahigh

Enquiries Romele Publications cc 32 Eleanor Street Troyeville 2094 Production and Art Direction Ivan Otterstrom ivan@romele.co.za

Twitter.com/ high_hola

Languages We have so many languages, not only in South Africa but at a global level. But how do we use these, just in South Africa? Are we all using at least more than one language – which tends to be English?

Of course it gets difficult. Culture comes into it very easily although that is not really a one-to-one equation. Is it possible to be Pedi with out speaking the language? Sounds strange, but …

What we are looking at this time will be the usage of anything else but English. We have a student evaluation of how it could be to be taught in something else. Is it even possible?

Although we have 11 official languages, we do operate in more than that. Braille and sign language are also there. So is Portuguese and maybe even Mandarin (maybe).

It probably shows the diversity that we mix it all up in something rather unique. The best thing is: we can still understand each other and laugh at it all - together.

Are we only English speaking?

No, we are surely not.

Of course we have 11 official languages, but do we try to operate in at least a few of the major ones?

Here is our first take on something new in Hola: An article about how difficult it is to write an article in our home language - and written in our home language!

Thanks Lattie, our newest writer

GO NGWALA KA POLELO YA SEPEDI Re ngwala bjang ka Sepedi ? Afa go wa kgonagala go ngwala ka polelo ya se ga borena matšatšing a lehono?

Go reng go le bothata go šumiša polelo ya Sepedi go ngwala le go ntšha sa mafahleng a rena bjalo ka polelo ya sejahlapi. Ga re sa kgona go

boledišana ge re kopana ka mahu go ba mekete ya ma gaeng, bana le batswadi ba tshwara bothata ka nako ya go bala lenaneo ka polelo yeo eleng ya ga bo bona, bana ba palelwa ke go boledišana le bo makgolo le bo rakgolo ba bona, ruri ke maswabiša dihlong.

E ka ba se se ra gore le setšo sa rena se a hwelela ? Go tla direga eng ge bana ba gola ka polelo ya sejahlapi gomme ba palelwa ke go šumiša polelo yeo eleng ya ga bo bona ka tshwanelo. Bothata bja polelo bo thomile ge re ithuta sejahlapi bjalo ka leleme la gae mo dikolong, seo se tšhabišitše bohlale le tsebo ya polelo ya Sepedi.

Go swana le bao ba bolelang Sepedi ka matšatši, go ba le phaphano go seo ba se bolelang le seo ba se ngwalang. Re ka bolela eupša bo ntšhi bja rena ra palelwa ke go se ngwala le go se bala gape le go beakantšha mantšu le mafoko ka tsela ya maleba. Bokamoso bja polelo ya Sepedi bo emi kae ? Ga go bonale go na le bokamoso polelong ya ga borena gobane ga nnyane ka nako e sepela rea e lebala.

Naa go ka direga eng gore polelo ya Sepedi e bowe e šumišwe ka tsela ya maleba ? Re ka thoma go ithuta go šumiša polelo ya ga borena ka mehla le matšatši. Ra e šumiša go ngwala, go bolela le go ithuta goe bala kantle le go peleta mantšu. Seo se tla thuša gore bana ba ka moso ba se timelele ke polelo ya bo bona.

Molatelo Kate Kgatla (Lattie)

Mother tongue in higher education One’s Home language (mother-tongue) is a complex topic in South Africa. The question of mother-tongue in education therefore also remains a complex and sometimes contentious topic.

But how far are we in getting an education that is completely in our home language?

First, let us get some context. South Africa has 11 official languages.

The fact is that English is a global language. Research is predominantly in English.

South Africa is slightly unique as Afrikaans was attempted to become the de facto language in South Africa. (medium of instruction in schools, causing the 1976 uprisings). This also ran into the problem of today: How to translate English (global) terms into Afrikaans?

If Afrikaans is your home language, you can get a higher education that is completely in Afrikaans, especially with the launch of the Solidarity’s Sol-Tech College.

Additionally, if we benchmark the educational vocabulary of South African home languages against English, Afrikaans is fairly leading because of the presence the language has had in higher education while other African languages are lacking behind. Even so, look at the pic.

Where did ‘memorandums’ and ‘video’ come from?

To illustrate this, Dimpho Mankabane (22) from Modimong in the North West participated in the Oxford Living dictionaries in 2019 while doing her final year in Genetics and Microbiology. As part of the programme, Mankabane took it upon herself to translate scientific terms such as amino acid, transcription DNA into her home language (Setswana) since they did not exist.

Mankabane mentions that the whole idea of study in our home language is a bit impractical at the moment, especially translating technical terms because all the words used in higher education (specifically science) are abstract and cannot easily be translated into other languages, let alone our respective home languages.

When asked if she would consider doing a degree in Setswana now, Mankabane replied “Already as it is, translating words to Setswana was difficult and very tricky due to the ambiguity that could exist. Therefore I would prefer to do any degree in English. I am not a pessimist or anything, but currently English makes things easy, whereas my home language might be complicated” However, Mankabane affirms that strides need to be made in introducing our mother tongues in higher education in order to acknowledge those before us and helping those who come after us to be proud of who they are.

Masiziba Hadebe

PROGRAMMES OFFERED DHET TVET College Bursary Scheme (Terms and Conditions apply)

STUDY FULL TIME OR PART TIME

BUSINESS SCHOOL - N4-N6 FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT (BENONI, BRAKPAN, SPRINGS) - N4-N6 MARKETING MANAGEMENT (BENONI, BRAKPAN, SPRINGS) - N4-N6 HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT (BENONI) - N4-N6 MANAGEMENT ASSISTANT (BENONI, BRAKPAN)

SCHOOL OF CREATIVE & SOCIAL SERVICES (N4-N6 FULL TIME) - N4-N6 TOURISM (SPRINGS ONLY) - N4-N6 HOSPITALITY (SPRINGS ONLY)

Tel: (011) 730 6600 | Fax: (011) 736 9909 | info@eec.edu.za | www.eec.edu.za @EkurhuleniEast

@EECTVETCOLLEGE

@EKURHULENIEASTTVETCOLLEGE

higher education & training Department: Higher Education and Training REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA

STUDENT JOURNEY

“

SCH OO L

F O

Innovation is seeing what everybody has seen and thinking what nobody has thought EERING GIN EN

DAVEYTON CAMPUS

EKURHULENI EAST TVET COLLEGE produced first innovative young man G who developed a cell phone.

OL OF ENGINE HO ER SC IN

The cell phone model demo IPRINO is named a�er his first nickname PRINO which is shortened from his first name ENGINEERING STUDIES Prince.

With the rapid growth in Computer Technology in South Africa and the world and a shi� towards the fourth Trimester 2 registration starts: 2020 Industrial Revolu�on Prince20is April keeping up with the Classes commence: May 2020of an inven�on of a technology as he has an 11 idea in mind health detec�on applica�on for the IPRINO that will Trimester 3 registration be starts: 17 August 2020 able to scan the body temperature and Classes commence: September detect if there07are any health2020 problems and recommends a healing plan for the disorder, BUSINESS SCHOOL he quoted.

SCHOOL OF CREATIVE & SOCIAL SCIENCES

When it comes to innova�on and crea�vity Prince Sebetha a former student of Ekurhuleni East Tvet College sets a KWA-THEMA CAMPUS good example.

His journey with the College started back in 2016 when he SC enrolled in one of our campuses (Daveyton Campus) for Engineering and Related Design (fi�ng and Turning).

“My dream is22toJune see the IPRINO cell Semester 2 registration starts: 2020 phone manufactured sold in South Classes commence: 13 July and 2020

SCHOOL ESS SIN U B

ENGINEERIN G OF N1 OL HO

BENONI CAMPUS “ In the year 2019, Ekurhuleni East Tvet College Placement office changed my life completely and made my dream come true when I got an opportunity to go for a Mechatronics engineering internship in Luzhou CAMPUS VocationalBRAKPAN and Technical College based in China”, said Sebetha.

Africa and in other African countries, as it

will be the first cell phone designed by a black DOCUMENTS REQUIRED South African young man from a small

N3

ESS SCHOOL SIN BU

SPRINGS CAMPUS

O SCHO L | SCH OO L

F O

S CE VI

BU

SS NE SI

With the knowledge he got from the Mechatronics internship he designed a cell phone model demo and he named it IPRINO.

”

REGISTRATION DATES...

1. Student ID certified copy (x3) disadvantaged and unrecognized village”, Prince 2. Parent(s) / Guardian ID concluded. certified copy (x3) Sebetha 3. Proof of address (x3) i.e The student's home address and not a box number. If a student comes from KZN, Limpopo, Soshanguve, etc the address must be from he/she comes from. Proof of address could be: 3.1 Certified Letter from the Local Municipality bearing the Municipality logo 3.2 Municipality bills receipt certified 3.3 Any retail shops certified statement such as Edgars as an example but not a bank statement 3.4 A letter from the traditional leader if coming from a village. The letter must bear the signature of the traditional leader and a stamp from the tradition leader.

4. Certified proof of income of parent(s) /Guardian (x1) 5. Student's bank statement (x1) 6. Lease agreement (x1) signed by both the student and the property owner 7. Certified Parent(s) Death Certificates (x1) 8. Certified student's results (x3) NB: ALL DOCUMENTS MUST BEAR A CERTIFICATION STAMP NOT OLDER THAN 3 MONTHS TO APPLY ONLINE:

https://eecapp.eec.edu.za/pls/prodi03/gen.gw1pkg.gw1startup?x_processcode=ITS_OAP

TEL: (011) 730 6600, WEBSITE: www.eec.edu.za, EMAIL: info@eec.edu.za

IVE & SOCI EAT AL CR SE R

Braille is indeed a language all by itself. We know the story (sort of – otherwise look it up).

How does it work? A character is represented by raised dots on a piece of paper. The dots are arranged in two columns of three positions. That gives 64 possible ‘characters’.

However, as there are more braille options than just the letters in any given alphabet, some ‘characters’ can represent entire phrases, etc. but then it becomes complex of course. That will be like learning Chinese Mandarin then.

Enough of the theory. Let us look at modern day usage and how blind people use modern techniques.

Of course a blind person can use a normal keyboard typing up anything.

We have software that will read it all back. That takes care of ‘writing’ – a good portion on how we do things, but what about using a mouse? And clicking and finding things and copy and paste and …

Not so simple! The latest is that new software can ‘read’ what is on the ‘screen’ and allow the user to then ‘point’ at folders, cut and paste, starting apps etc. In essence, whatever is on the screen can be accessed.

JAWS and NonVisual Desktop Access are the top ones. Let us see what Wiki says about NonVisual Desktop Access “NonVisual Desktop Access (NVDA) is a free, open-source, portable screen reader for Microsoft Windows.

NVDA is programmed in Python. It currently works exclusively with accessibility APIs such as UI Automation, Microsoft Active Accessibility, IAccessible2 and the Java Access Bridge, rather than using specialized video drivers to “intercept” and interpret visual information.

NVDA uses eSpeak as its integrated speech synthesizer. It also supports the Microsoft Speech platform synthesiser, ETI Eloquence and also supports SAPI synthesizers.

Besides general Windows functionality, NVDA works with software such as Microsoft office applications, WordPad, Notepad, Windows Media Player, web browsers such as Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome, Internet Explorer, and Microsoft Edge. It supports most email clients such as Outlook, Mozilla Thunderbird, and Outlook Express.

NVDA also works with most functions of Microsoft Word, Microsoft PowerPoint and Microsoft Excel.

Since early 2009, NVDA supports the WAIARIA standard for Accessible Rich Internet Applications, to facilitate better accessibility of web applications for blind users.

In essence: Being blind is a challenge but not a ‘disabler’.

Let us get past the basics. Sign language is just as intricate as any other language.

And there are just as many languages. English sign language is different to American sign language and both different to Japanese sign language, and so on.

Are Braille and sign language in the same category?

Although both address a communication need for impaired people, the physical properties are very different.

It is not so simple with a deaf person. Of course it is possible to watch a video but let us face it: by and large the audio is a huge part of any communication.

If it is a pre-recorded video it is possible to have the interpreter down in the corner – as we have seen before. But then – what language, when it is say Youtube addressing a global audience.

The next obstacle is if we look at online real-time video streaming. It could be from a meeting. If it is a two-way communication between two deaf persons, it might just work out. But the big IF is that they should both use the same language. If one is from US and the other from Spain, then it might not work at all.

The obvious solution is that an interpreter must be a part of such a communication. It is the same situation where the conversation is

between a hearing person and a deaf person. The interpreter must be a part of it. The new word is Video Relay Services (VRS). In essence: the online interpreter.

According to Wiki, some of the cell phone companies are now offering a free sign language gateway. It ultimately will mean that a hearing-impaired person can function as well as any other person.

The real break-through will have to be using technology. Is it possible for the PC (or cell phone) to ‘listen’ to the spoken words and then have an avatar to do the signing? Is it possible to have a deaf person doing the signing and the app picks it up and turns it into speech? Is it possible to have one deaf person signing in one language and the avatar turns it into another signing language?

This is the next level. Yes, the technology is being tried in China by Microsoft. Look here: Look at the video. It is impressive although it is still early days.

It will allow for a smooth conversation and allow a hearing-impaired person to function in any situation without limitations.

When we look at languages, we also realise that some languages are more difficult to learn than others. Of course they might not be difficult for a person born in such a setting, but even so.

So which ones are the most difficult to learn? And for whom? In any event, this is from an English-speaking perspective. I found an interesting piece here.

Right at top we find Mandarin. Surprise!

It is not just that it is a tonal language (the pitch can change according to context – I think). It is also because it operates with idioms, and aphorism and so on.

On top of, without a basic understanding and knowledge of Chinese culture, it is difficult to even starting to grasp it.

There are thousands of characters which must be mastered before one can claim to be even reasonable fluent in Mandarin.

Of course there is more than just one Chinese language. Although Mandarin is the ‘official’ language, the other big one is Cantonese. And of course, a Cantonese speaking may not understand even one word of Mandarin!

Number two on the list is Arabic.

It starts with a determination of which Arabic language as there are several of them. Then it is into the written language where there are different forms of a letter depending on where in the word it is placed. When we start to get this right, we need to look out for those small dots. Those determine the pronunciation and thereby the meaning of the word. The script is a bit tricky as well as it is cursive only.

Hungarian comes in as number 4 (after Japanese). Why is Hungarian so difficult?

Sure it has a slightly different alphabet, but it also has some 26 cases and suffixes dictate tense and possession instead of the word order. And of course it is rooted in a cultural setting. The right understanding only comes with an understanding of Hungarian culture. In essence: it is the complexity that kills it.

As number 8 I quote directly: “From North America, Navajo is a verb-centred language. This means that descriptions are given through verbs, in addition, most English adjectives have no direct translation into Navajo. It also sounds very different and in fact there are a number of sounds in the language that just do not appear in English at all… making pronunciation especially difficult.

Welcome to the Tower of Babel

What makes a language difficult to learn?

What is difficult? One person may have problems with the Cyrillic alphabet another may struggle with learning Navajo.

Is there a ‘golden rule’ in this maze of languages? Actually not. However, I found something interesting that might shed a bit of light on this. it is here.

I quote from the site: “Researchers have found through brain scans that it is possible to know who will be able to learn a language successfully. It is based on how the person’s language centers communicate while the brain is at rest, which is the stage when most learning happens. Therefore, it is important for a learner to have enough sleep”.

Surprised? I was. So, learning a language involves a good nights sleep?

“This is based on the scientific research of Canadian scientists at McGill University where they found out that if the left superior temporal gyrus and left anterior operculum communicate more when the brain is resting, it is easier for the person to learn a language.”

I never even knew I had one of those, but alas…

Here is a bit that totally makes sense: If a new language is close to ones home language, it is easier to learn. Now, that is a surprise of course.

The US State Department The grouped languages ing to length of study should use to achieve proficiency. The base

has conducted a survey. into four groups accorda student on average a certain level of language was English.

English-speakers use group 1 languages (a Italian, Afrikaans (yes!), German is in group 1, it is more complex.

the least time learning year’s time), comprising etc. However, Although takes longer as the grammar

The trick here is that English and Germanic languages are coming from the same root language; hence even today it can be seen in the amount of time used to learn one of the Germanic root languages.

Group 2 and 3 comprise Swahili, Greek, Vietnamese, Finnish, Estonian, etc.

Group 4 is the real hard one. On average it takes a student 2 years to learn languages such as Mandarin, Cantonese and Arabic, However, it is more than just the ‘distance’ from English to a new language. It is also the very nature of the new language. It just might be difficult due to sounds, grammar and those things.

Try to listen to Navajo and be surprised! (or maybe listen to Mark - Facebook who actually can do it!)

TVETs are evolving and there is more to it.

The newest is Centre of Specialisation.

We have an industry view on it all from Mr. Thozamile Mvumvu from Nortlink TVET college.

Mr. Thozamile Mvumvu is writing in his personal capacity.

The establishment of Centres of Specialisation (CoS) is a part of the DHET national programme, aimed to increase the delivery of qualified artisans, producing a skilled and capable workforce to make a difference in the South African economy. The declaration of these Centres of Specialisation comes with the augmentation of resources to enhance capacity building within Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Colleges, and to deliver trade qualifications with employer partners.

Furthermore, these Centres of Specialisation are intended to address priority trades required for the implementation of the government’s vision for the 2030 National Development Plan (NDP).

Students in the programme are afforded the opportunity to acquire the relevant training in skills required in the country which will lead to employment.

The success of these Centres relies on the participation by various stake-

holders, such as industry associations, employers in artisanal development namely the Retail Motor Industry (RMI), Steel and Engineering Industry Federation (SEIFSA), Institute of Plumbing (IOPSA) and South African Institute of Welding (SAIW) which are all part of this ground-breaking initiative.

With the current economic challenges facing South Africa today, there is a clear need to obliterate the youth unemployment challenge. It requires action across a range of fronts, including measures to promote youth skills development and helping prepare them for the work environment. These CoS helps improve the country’s economic development, and active measures to encourage labour market injection. Evidence shows that effective vocational programmes can be part of the answer, in providing practical training linked to the prospect of job security.

On Thursday, 6 May 2021, Northlink TVET College opened its third Centre of Specialisation (CoS) for Boilermaker at Bellville Campus.

The College prides itself on housing three Centres of Specialisation awarded by the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET). In 2019, the CoS: Fitter and Turner opened at Wingfield campus and in January of this year, the CoS: Electrician opened at Belhar campus.

by Mr. Thozamile Thomas Mvumvu Northlink College Mr. Mvumvu writes in his personal capacity

New Exhibitions

We added two new exhibitions to our collection on the floor.

The 4IR and Mirror Maze exhibitions

4IR Exhibition The 4IR exhibition currently hosts the Humanoids (two small ones and the big one called Pepper), Virtual reality Station, Augmented Reality and the interactive displays integrated with of a number of TV screens.

This concept is through the touch screen located at the entrance to the center. Interactive display section has been created where visitors are encouraged to use traditional touch screens to immerse themselves in games and content around Science Technology Engineering and Arts and Mathematics (STEAM).

Children are provided with the opportunity to play games to train their analytical ability, improve their ability to solve puzzles and chal-

lenges. They are also challenged to explore more traditional content style, such as exploration of subjects including how Artificial Intelligence works, Machine Learning, how data transfers over networks etc.

Science Exploration While traditional science teaching has complex challenges around logistics, safety and costs. VR has none of these limitations. Experiments are done as often as needed with no physical costs of materials or safety concerns. Students can learn about physics and chemistry, life science etc. in a safe environment. Within VR learning occurs without any distract but with full immersion. Learning and understanding mathematics becomes easier and more fun inside of VR due to the nature of games and how they are designed.

This is designed to make learning and exploration real fun especially for little ones. Wide learning opportunities exist through this exhibition, children have many prospects to learn on, e.g. google earth exploration experience.

With Google Earth VR, children can travel to almost any place in the world. They can fly all over the world and explore any city, any monument and landmark anywhere in the world.The exhibition has two different types of humanoids the small one (called Sanbot Max and the Bigger one called Pepper).

The Sanbot Max robot was designed to be implemented into numerous kinds of business scenarios, providing customers and staff members with intelligent and efficient services.

Pepper is a semi-humanoid robot, which means that a human has to control it. It is designed with the ability to read emotions. Pepper recognizes faces and basic human emotion.

Drones and Mirror Maze Drones Pilots at the Clubhouse Did you know that the Clubhouse has three certified drone pilots?

They also have 10 DJI Tell drones that they will used for their drone course.

They are currently putting together content for the said course.

In addition, the Clubhouse offers programmes such as Teach Fundamentals of drones, real-life applications of drones: namely surveillance using object identification and tracking to videography for commercials and other media use.

This includes python programming that covers drone automation.

Mirror Maze Exhibit A mirror is an object that reflects an image. Light that bounces off a mirror will show an image of whatever is in front of it, when focused through the lens of the eye or a camera.

Mirrors reverse the direction of the image in an equal yet opposite angle from which the light shines upon it. This allows the viewer to see themselves or objects behind them, or even objects that are at an angle from them but out of their field of view, such as around a corner.

Natural mirrors prehistoric times, water, but people turing mirrors out rials for thousands metals, and glass. metals like silver often used due to applied as a thin cause of its natuhard surface.

have existed since such as the surface of have been manufacof a variety of mateof years, like stone, In modern mirrors, or aluminum are their high reflectivity, coating on glass berally smooth and very

A maze is a path or collection of paths, typically from an entrance to a goal. The word is used to refer both to branching tour puzzles through which the solver must find a route, and to simpler non-branching patterns that lead unambiguously through a convoluted layout to a goal. The pathways and walls in a maze are typically fixed, but puzzles in which the walls and paths can change during the game are also categorised as mazes or tour puzzles Mirror Maze The mirror maze itself is a pattern, combining several characteristics of geometric patterns: repetition, symmetry and tessellation using repeated equilateral triangles. These triangles fit together without any gaps or overlaps, creating a tessellation. Mirrored surfaces all around reflect the pattern so that it repeats and appears infinite.

This time we look at an education district. We know the school is teaching, we know the department is doing guidelines,... but a district?

The easist way of figuring that out is to ask the experts.

That is why we asked Edith Wynne-Trollip, Curriculum Support and Advise, Overberg Education District, Western Cape Transport is offered to those who might have a need to be transported to school.

There are certain criteria that must be satisfied and parents may apply for this service.

Hostel accommodation is also subsidized by the Department of Education if the learner applies and duly completes the required documentation for hostel accommodation at the school of their choice.

The District Office has other services for learners and parents who would like their results to be re-marked or to register for re-examinations.

Dates and deadlines can be found at the Assessment Desk at your local District Office.

Various extra support programmes in terms of curriculum delivery are available by contacting the various Subject Advisors of the various subjects.

Sports and various extra mural codes are administrated and promoted via the School Enrichment Officials at the District Office.

Library services are up and running in all districts and books can be ordered to assist learners with assignments and old examination question papers at no cost to the learner(s).

The Library services are also there to assist with information for research assignments.

The services below can be offered:: The Learning Support section identifies curriculum barriers that learners experience in a subject(s) using various methods of assessment.

Based on the outcome, the appropriate interventions will be recommended such as in-class support/withdrawal for learning support/ remedial education or referral for further assessment/support.

Psychologists provide a consultative and advisory psycho educational service to schools, including psychological and educational assessments.

Support may include assistance with individual/group support plans, assessment accommodations, referrals to special schools, counselling etc. as well as providing guidance for parents and teachers in support of learners.

Short-term therapeutic interventions e.g. responding to trauma can be provided as required.

What do they do?

School Social Work Services focus on addressing social, emotional and behavioral barriers in learning, such as challenges relating to the learner’s relationship with the family, school, peer group and the community e.g. bullying, substance abuse, child abuse, bereavement etc.

Service delivery to learners encompasses guidance to parents and teachers in support of the learner. Short term intervention on an individual and/or group basis with learners and/or parents is provided.

Therapists conduct screening and assessments to identify developmental barriers to learning. Support may include home programmes to address physical- (e.g. balance) perceptual- (e.g. letter and number reversal), sensory- (e.g. sensitivity to loud noises or bright light), speech, language and hearing difficulties, guidance to parents and teachers, as well as training sessions.

A therapy coordinator per district may evaluate referred cases to determine the level of support needed.

Source - WCED Flyer: GUIDE TO SPECIALISED SUPPORT SERVICES

Edith Wynne-Trollip (writing in her personal capacity) Curriculum Support and Advise Overberg Education District

HOW TO CHOOSE YOUR CAREER Knowing yourself and your capabilities

Choo se Subj your ects

Care Plan er ning

eer Car ice o ch

For you to pursue your career choice.

You need to pass your Nationa l Senior Certi ficate!

The Eastern Ca pe Department of Education enco urages learners to choose suitable career path, by collecting inform ation that will he lp them pursue their career / field of study.

“it is in your hands “ - Nelson Rolihl

ahla Mandela

Sondlo & Knopp Advertising

Hola MaHi We just created our whatsapp group!

Why not join?

The group name is Hola MaHigh-School and you can chuck me a whatsapp on 076 503 1282 and you will get added pronto.

igh-School What will you receive?

We will have the monthly digizine in your hands via the link to Issuu. That is a quick way of making sure you can enjoy it in your own time. ` Info and more info We promise not to burden you with too much info, but if and when something great is happening (an article perhaps?) we will push it out to you.

Can I post as well?

Limited for now, but please feel free to whatsapp me on my office cell: 076 503 1282.

If it is relevant, we wil ensure it gets out there.

May is Africa month so we will be looking at inspiration across our borders.

Our creative artist of the month is Carlos Macuacua ‘Rong Man’ born in Mozambique.

Rong Man began doing music as a hobby in high school. He was known as a battle rapper and freestyling and that is how he was given the name Wrong Man spelled Rong Man. Rong Man moved to South Africa after completing his high school, coming to help out his brother who was running a business.

That decision was going to change his life forever! Shortly after his move to South Africa he met Tonic Tweezy who taught him about music production. Now he got into producing his own music.

Rong Man met up with CeeZow and they started a rap duo called MozSouth which now consist of 6 members.

Is it only music? Rong Man has other qualities. A curious mind that got him into other things – and by and large self-taught. That is the inspiration.

Without any major formal education, he got into photography, videography, editing and graphic design.

Believe it or not, he is now working with some of the biggest artist in SA such as Tabza Berry, Du Rich, Mad de dj. His latest adventure is his video and photography company (Self Thought) and is also partnering with CIM records under CR Visuals and has shot a few of music videos that are playing on Trace.

Rong Man puts it like this: “if you put effort into everything you do you will always get positive results”.

s r ha e t i r wn w or us: o r Ou re f o m got ratb e l e I’m c day and y a Tod y birth to ing m wanted t song s t I jus my late ft G e s ster Proshar i l B d e Title otiv Man M k c Rong sma y b d Listen here: duce

Lezy de Yong

What is NSFAS?

The National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) is a government entity under the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET)

What does NSFAS do?

Supports access to and success in, higher education and training for students from poor and working-class families who would otherwise not be able to afford the cost of studies at a public university or Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) college.

• Provides financial aid to eligible students who are studying or plan to study at any of the 50 TVET colleges or the 26 public universities in South Africa • Identifies students who qualify for the bursary • Provides bursaries to students

Who qualifies for NSFAS funding?

• All South African citizens • All SASSA grant recipients • Applicants whose combined household income is not more than R350 000 per annum • Persons with disabilities with a combined household income of not more than R600 000 per annum • Students who started studying at a university before 2018 and whose household income is not more than R122 000 per annum

What does the NSFAS bursary cover?

• Registration • Tuition • Book allowance • Accommodation allowance • Transport allowance • Food allowance • Personal care allowance

Does the NSFAS bursary offer any additional support for students with disabilities?

Yes, NSFAS further supports funded students with disabilities through an additional allowance that covers: • Medical assessments • Assistive devices • Human support to cover for the cost of a caregiver, guide dog, scribe or tutor.

How, where and when can one apply for NSFAS? The 2021 application season will be communicated through media, social media and the NSFAS website www.nsfas.org.za.

Applications are submitted online through the NSFAS website: www.nsfas.org.za

To apply for NSFAS funding students must have a registered myNSFAS account.

If you plan to study in 2021 and require support from NSFAS, you may open your myNSFAS account now to keep updated with the latest funding information.

Connect with us using the following channels: National Student Financial Aid Scheme

myNSFAS

myNSFAS

NSFAS Connect: www.nsfas.org.za and log into your myNSFAS account NSFAS Connect gives you access to quick facts and frequently asked questions. Applicants and students can also submit and track a query for further assistance.

It should have been in 2020 – but thanks to Covid it got moved to this year.

It is now from 23 July to 8 August 2021. It is the first time the Olympics has been moved, not just cancelled.

We probably know a lot of the competitions that will be going on. We probably all admire the running and the swimming business. But is it static? Do we see some disciplines going and new ones coming in?

We do indeed, and that is what we will turn to this time.

3x3 basketball is a new one at the Olympics. Not saying that basketball has not been there before, but this is now a discipline for both men and women. But what is it? It is close to our netball in school.

One court, one pole with the hoop – only one.

What I didn’t know was it is the largest urban team sport in the world.

The global tournament involves awarding six-figure prize money in US dollars.

Here is another one: Sport climbing. This involves 3 different things: Lead climbing: This is climbing a prepared wall with different rocks and things. It is supposed to resemble an outdoor event.

Speed climbing: Again a prepared wall. But here it is speed that is important.

Bouldering: This is free climbing. No rope or harness or anything. Just climb up the prepared wall.

Here is a favourite: Freestyle BMX. It has a number of different events (Wiki): “It is an extreme sport descended from BMX racing that consists of five disciplines: street, park, vert, trails, and flatland”.

And we tip our hat to skateboarding. It just shows that Olympics are not static. There are plenty of new things on the board.

A classic, right out of Greece those many years back (700 BC Nogal) is Greco-Roman Wrestling.

Says Wiki: “This style of wrestling forbids holds below the waist, which is the main feature that differentiates it from freestyle wrestling (the other form of wrestling contested at the Olympics). This restriction results in an emphasis on throws, because a wrestler cannot use trips to bring an opponent to the ground or hook/grab the opponent’s leg to avoid being thrown.

Of course we look forward to it all.

Let us just hope it takes off!

The Olympic disciplines that went There are a few things that had to go. Some of them I would hardly know.

Somehow it shows that the Olympics have come a long way.

Surely it was started up again around 1900 and the goal was to be inclusive and represent both the classic sports (wrestling, javelin, archery etc) and taking into account what was hot.

Soccer is still there, just as hot as in 1896.

Golf came back in 2016.

But what went out?

Rugby went out and is now seven Rugby instead. Don’t expect to see the big names there!

Cricket is out. So is Polo and Tug-of-war. Unfortunately. But maybe those things has not attracted a lot of spectators as of late.

Basque Pelota is out. But … what was that anyway?

Says Wiki: “Basque pelota is the name for a variety of court sports played with a ball using one’s hand, a racket, a wooden bat or a basket, against a wall or, more traditionally, with two teams face to face separated by a line

on the ground or a net. The roots of this class of games can be traced to the Greek and other ancient cultures.

team. And that was nearly it.

It got introduced in the 1900 games.

Only two teams registered but one of them withdrew before the competition.

The first prize was given to the Spanish

Water Motorsports had a debut in 1908. It dies a slow death. But history: this was and is the only time a motorised sport has been a part of the Olympics. Otherwise it is ‘brawn’ and not motors.

But the Olympics also have a class of demonstration events. These are not part of the medal business. These are – as it says on the tin – demonstrations only.

How about: Korfball (1920): is a ball sport, with similarities to netball and basketball. It is played by two teams of eight players with four female players and four male players in each team. The objective is to throw a ball into a netless basket that is mounted on pole.

The more ‘typical’ ones are: Ballooning, bowling, American football, water skiing and so on.

Let us leave the others to the ‘mystery’ basket.

Good viewing!

Do we see any new ‘things’ happening when we talk computers? True enough, we need programmers and we need programs and apps and so on.

All said, are the programming languages we have right now sufficient when we look into the future? And what is the future in terms of computing?

Artificial Intelligence is surely the hottest topic. The question is whether we can resemble any intelligence with the linear languages we have.

Sure, Python 3 is out, but a lot of what we meet is in the Java Virtual Machine environment etc. Can those really be used?

The other big question is if the hardware elements we are using are suitable for AI. First of all: AI requires processing of huge amounts of data. The processing cannot be linear (von Neumann architecture cannot be used).

We need to get to where data-dependent processing is possible.

In my world it will mean that the app reacts to the data it has found. A ‘stupid’ example: ‘Is Shakespeare a better poet than Goethe?’ The app ought to fetch data, fetch another app that can compare poetry, run its data through and come with an evaluation. Look at it: it is driven by the data!

New high-speed graphics chips are closest to enabling this. Qualcomm Snapdragon is the closest we can get to high-speed graphics right now.

All of it must somehow be concentrated down on a standard chip size.

We are getting there!

That leaves the programming.

I found something rather great. It is from Quora (of all places) and is written by Sridhar Mahadevan, Director, Data Science Lab, Adobe Research, San Jose. It is here.

I quote freely from the article (with a bit of editing) and you will see the magnitude of his thoughts. First of all, he does see a future where we need to eliminate ‘programs’.

“The ultimate goal of AI and machine learning, therefore, is to simply eliminate “programming”. What fun is a smart machine if I have to tell it what to do? “ “So, our goal for the future of AI systems should be to eliminate programming languages entirely! That being said, one has to of course realize that we do need some language to encode the solutions that we want our machines to learn. So, what should the language be?”

So, the closest to the ideal we can currently realize is the model of reinforcement learning. Here, we tell a machine what we want it to do by simply giving it a reward function.

It’s much easier to tell a machine what the reward function should be, than to code the entire program.”

“Is reinforcement learning our ultimate solution to the problem of eliminating programming languages from AI. Not by a long shot. The current formulation of reinforcement learning [..is not enough!..] Because we have to write a reward function” “OK, what’s a better solution? There’s a beautiful idea from psychology called “intrinsic motivation”, which tries to capture the inherent capacity to learn in children and animals. Intrinsically motivated agents are simply curious about the world, and seek novel stimuli and novel tasks to learn”.

“If we can figure out how to get machines to “play”, we will achieve the next breakthrough in AI” In my ‘world’ we need to look deeper: We need a descriptor language where we can uniquely set tasks, maybe even with ‘fuzzy’ goals. It should be immediate as we should get away from compilers. That is where a Qualcomm initiative comes in

where we see a direct response on data.

Data ought to drive the programming (or rather the neural connections) associated with a task.

Now we ultimately talk quantum chips and I for one do not see AI ‘moving’ before we get to quantum technology.

It does not remove the ‘fun’ side of AI. If we cannot describe what we want in a very unique way, we might see ‘scope creep’. The app will try to compensate and ‘guess’ what is the end goal and that is where we might end up in something very different to our intentions.

Is this something that has happened? Yes, there was an experiment where the ‘program’ had several iterations on the end-goal. As the end-goal was fuzzy (and due to the speed of the computer), the end goal became something completely different.

This is exactly what also Elon Musk has warned about: AI is great, but do we understand what ‘goal’ is and can we describe it?

It’s mov

All courtesy of Flicks - loo

Black Monday Don Cheadle (House of Lies) earned an Emmy nomination in this Showtime comedy series set in the late ‘80s, where a group of outsiders aim to challenge the oldboys club of Wall Street. Co-stars Regina Hall (Girls Trip) and Paul Scheer (The League).

Screening: 23 May 221

vie time!

ok them up and see!

The Kominsky Method: Season 3 Michael Douglas leads this Golden Globe-winning comedy as an aging actor with a lauded career who now makes a living as an acting coach.

Screening: 28 May 2021

The music scene in SA in terms of language, besides English and Afrikaans ? Why do we not know about it? or do we?

Firstly, in my opinion, I think that if you are a South African (born or living here) it should be obvious that you should know or understand at least more than English or Afrikaans. Music is one of the keys to learning more about our history, heritage and each other’s traditions.

We have plenty of musicians. South Africa’s music tradition is both rich and varied. Of course English is the common denominator, but there is so much more.

Examples of artists who are really making an impact in the country (and not using English nor Afrikaans), but are well recognized could be Sjava, Bet award winner in 2019 and also featured on the black panther movie, Sho Majozi, also Bet award winner who took the world by Storm with her hit record called John Cena, Master Kg and Nomcebo who had the biggest song worldwide with Jerusalema and Bongeziwe Mabadla, guitar player, singer and actor who is making a lot of waves in countries like Germany. Remarkable, he sings in his home language - isixhosa - and there’s a lot more than I can count.

The music scene here at home has always been about us being proudly and loudly South African though there might be a lot of influence from overseas.

I feel that over the years we have learned to embrace our cultures all the more and the world is now beginning to catch up with us.

I mean Beyonce featured Busiswa and Moon child on her album and both these artists are using their home language in the songs.

This is amazing as the fact that they did not have to conform or change just because it is Beyonce makes me very proud to be South African and I believe we are a force to be reckoned with.

The world of music is still going to change and our home languages are still going to be embraced and celebrated for years and years to come.

The global music scene demands diversification and South Africa can provide exactly that – and in our home languages.

Lezy de Yong

June: the (sort of) birthday month Why sort of? Well, it is complicated (all from Wiki) Queen Elisabeth II: She was born 21 April.

However, the Northern Europeans are a practical lot so her official birthday this year is 12 June 2021. At least in the UK. But the other countries (and overseas territories and things) can determine that date themselves.

But why, oh why? Because the weather is typically better in June than in April!

However, it has not always been the norm to celebrate the monarch’s birthday. It started in 1748 with George II. The date was determined by proclamation so it was already a fact that it could vary from the real one.

Luxembourg: The Grand Duke’s Official Birthday is celebrated as the annual national holiday of Luxembourg. It is celebrated on 23 June, although this has never been the actual birthday of any ruler of Luxembourg. When the monarch of Luxembourg is female, it is known as the Grand Duchess’s Official Birthday (Wiki).

Biggest royal party ever This is without doubt the 2,500-year celebration of the Persian Empire, which consisted of an elaborate set of festivities that took place on 12–16 October 1971 to celebrate the anniversary of the founding of the Imperial State of Iran and the ancient Achaemenid Empire by Cyrus the Great.

The festivities were opened on 12 October 1971. For the next two days, the Shah and Shahbanu (his wife) greeted arriving guests. On 14 October, a grand gala dinner took place in the Banqueting Hall in celebration of the birthday of the Shahbanu. Sixty members of royal families and heads of state were assembled at the single large serpentine table in the Banqueting Hall.

The food and the wine for the celebration were provided by the Parisian restaurant Maxim’s.

Six hundred guests dined over five and a half hours thus making for the longest and most lavish official banquet in modern history as recorded in successive editions of the Guinness Book of World Records.

A son et lumière show, the Polytope of Persepolis designed by Iannis Xenakis and accompanied by the specially-commissioned electronic music piece Persepolis concluded the evening.

PS: The cost was probably some $22 million (some $145 million in today’s money).

We need writers!

Hola MaHigh-School is YOUR magazine. That is why we would love to see students writing for students about student life and everything of importance to a student in any grade10-12 across the country.

What is required? That is easy: You have to be in grade 10-12 somewhere Impeccable in your preferred language-and that might not be English. We try to be more than just English.

Passionate about your topic of choice - no dull articles here.

Do you get anything out of it?

Well, not money, sorrry. BUT if we publish your articles you will have: Your bio in a commercial magazine A photo of yourself You can put it all on your CV you can use us as a reference

Is it important?

YES it is.

Look what Rofhiwa said: My name is Rofhiwa and I love to write. I have used my skills to express my thoughts on international dealings of the world which have been published in Hola MaHigh-School.

It has paid off, not only is my work printed for young people in the country to read, but it also contributed to me gettng a bursary from CNBC-Africa to do my post-graduate studies.

Would be a lot harder to get by if I didn’t have a platform like Hola MaHigh-School.

Email

What me on

to do?

ivan@ ro name mele.co.za : Cell n u m b e E-ma r i ... and l address we wi ll talk !

Next Issue June - and this is cold this year!

June is also Youth Month. And let us face it: it is not easy to be out there when you should be ‘in there’.

Diversity is what South Africa is all about.

This time we will look at how youth culture is different from old time and how diverse we really are.

But there is also plenty of other things.

We hope you enjoy the first article from our new writer, Lattie. There is more to come.

Good read!

Sybil

Coronavirus

Protect yourself

Wash your hands with soap for 20 seconds How long is 20 seconds?

Hum the first verse of our national anthem: Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrika

thebreadcrumbs.co.za

More info: www.health.gov.za

CLEAN HANDS SAFER LANDS