Season 7 Episode 34
The FunDza Literacy Trust is a South African nonprofit dedicated to improving literacy among teens and young adults. Education provides the foundation for a healthy, stable, growth-oriented society – literacy is its cornerstone.
In this episode, we speak to the students of Intshukumo Primary School in Gugulethu township who are currently participating in the Year Beyond Program after school which offers the opportunity to expand reading, English and creative writing skills in partnership with the FunDza! app and curriculum. This program fosters an interest in all things educational with a primary focus on encouraging linguistic and compositional capabilities. For many students in Cape Town townships, the world after school is a distracting and often dangerous place. Some children begin dating at young ages, are asked to join gangs or may even be “flighted by a taxi driver” as one of the students in this episode describes. Opportunities to continue to learn outside of the typical school day are crucial for children and teens who are motivated to move out of the stereotypes of township life.