N Pandor: Nkosi Albert Luthuli Young Historians Award ceremony

29 September 2007

Honourable guests
Members of the adjudication panels
Participants

It is a pleasure to visit the Nkosi Albert Luthuli Museum today and it is a
pleasure to say a few words at this awards ceremony for the Nkosi Albert
Luthuli Young Historians' Competition. One of the challenges that we face as a
society is that of teaching children about the past. It is a challenge that all
societies face, but one that is especially difficult in our society, divided as
it was on the basis of race.

With film, video and audio it is easier than ever before to teach our
children about our past in its many dimensions to bring to life the choices
individuals made and the many and varied consequences of those choices. The
"writing" of South African history remains a massive undertaking. We're only
now beginning to see the emergence of history textbooks that weave together the
histories of all our peoples. This has largely been made possible through the
publication of life histories of the making of documentaries on the life
histories of ordinary people.

For example, the commemoration of the 13th anniversary of the Youth
Uprisings in 2006 stimulated a great deal of interest in capturing the memories
of many of those who lived through those days. Another example is the
department's recent publication on apartheid education. Members of the public
were invited to submit their experiences of education under apartheid. Through
this process over 200 submissions were received from all parts of the country,
from people of all races and ages, all welcoming the opportunity to tell their
stories.

Many of the stories are painful and recall dark memories. Others are tales
of hope and light, of moments when the forces of democracy were able to resist
the repression of the state. The South African Archives also promotes oral
history research by collecting stories of historical events through the
memories of individuals. Their work, along with the work of countless
organisations in the country such as South African Democracy Education Trust
(SADET) and South African History Online, is invaluable. We should also not
forget the work of historians in higher-education institutions, where the study
of oral history is now more prominent than ever before.

Ms Sambumbu, the winner of the educator's award in this competition in 2006,
was awarded a scholarship to enrol at the University of the Western Cape to
pursue her interest in heritage studies. Congratulations to her. Oral history
is centrally concerned with questions to do with identity: who we are, where we
come from, who our parents are, how we fit into local communities. I find it
immensely encouraging that recent surveys reveal that many of our young people
now identify themselves as South Africans first rather than Zulu or Xhosa or
Muslim.

The curriculum encourages teachers and learners to undertake oral-history
research. What better way of teaching about values of respect and ubuntu, than
to invite our community elders into the classroom to share the richness of
their experiences and daily lives? I am encouraged by the numbers of
schoolchildren who have engaged in this competition and who are keeping alive
their heritage, during our heritage month of September.

Indeed, I am also very pleased that this Competition and Award Ceremony is
taking place here at the Albert Luthuli Museum, the site of the home of Albert
Luthuli. On the way here learners and educators will have passed many places
that are famous in our political history. They will have passed the turnoff to
Inanda, where Dr JL Dube started his school Ohlange and also the site of one of
the oldest girls' schools in the country, Inanda Seminary.
Many of these schools were centres of excellence before the apartheid regime
made their existence difficult and in some cases impossible. They are shining
examples to the principals, teachers and learners of today of how, in the midst
of deep adversity, they achieved academic and all-round excellence. Learners
came out of those schools well equipped with admirable qualities and skills to
prosper, despite the formidable handicaps placed in their paths by the
apartheid state.

I would like to see that those schools are given the true recognition that
they deserve. Through the efforts of the Historic Schools Board under the
chairpersonship of Anglican Archbishop Ndungane and the Minister of Arts and
Culture, Dr Pallo Jordan, MP in partnership with the Department of Education,
several of our historic schools, including those in KwaZulu-Natal will be
restored to their former excellence. Nkosi Albert Luthuli's life was shaped by
some of these historic institutions.

He went to Ohlange, he studied at Edendale, he taught at Blaaubosch and he
studied and taught at Adams College. Not only was he a committed student, a
lifelong scholar, and a Nobel Peace Prize winner, but he was a dedicated
teacher. In the Department we encourage young people to follow his example and
to choose education as a profession. Through our service-bursary programme,
Fundza Lushaka, we offer bursaries to those who wish to pursue this noble
profession. Equally, in our schools we are committed to teaching the
foundational values of equality and dignity.

Yet too often we read newspaper reports of unacceptable and violent learner
behaviour at and outside school. We have passed laws to make schools safer
places and we are making it easier for teachers to teach rather than to control
their pupils. But the values that our children learn are first learned at
home.
It is so important that parents take an interest in their children, in their
children's education and in particular in reading aloud to them from pre-school
days. Good behaviour is not something that can be learned at school alone.

In closing, let me thank all of you for taking part in this competition.
Participants will have learnt important oral-history skills, interviewing
techniques and the like it is no simple task to get people to talk. I hope that
your efforts will be recorded and used as examples for other learners in the
future. I congratulate all the educators who are representing their provinces
at this event.

I trust that all of you will renew your efforts in the classroom. I thank
the Nkosi Albert Luthuli Museum Board and staff for agreeing to accommodate
Award Ceremony here today and also thank the Durban High School for their warm
support of the adjudication process. I wish also to thank all the adjudicators
who gave up their time to assist the department in this competition.

I thank you all.

Issued by: Department of Education
29 September 2007
Source: Department of Education (http://www.education.gov.za)