Extended partnership programme with St Swithun’s School and Schitsdrift School in South Africa

We are developing an extended project with St Swithun's School to write teaching materials for the rural school near Ladysmith in South Africa. PHS has visited in 2016 and 2018, with our Sixth formers teaching the children in the classroom and supporting the school with other activities. 

Children from Year 5 in St Swithun’s and the Prep School have been working together to write materials that will support those classes without a teacher and provide opportunities for the children to extend the information that they are given, often by rote.

Aims

The books written by Portsmouth High and St Swithun's will cover a range of topics including star gazing, weather and family stories about how people are linked to the land. All tasks within the book will be directed by hand-drawn images of each of the children.
‘We are making sure the topics fit with the South African curriculum,’ added Assistant Head. ‘And over the course of the next few months we hope this same group of children can produce a series of work books for us to send to the school.’

Background

The relationships between the schools developed after a chance meeting between the Portsmouth High School Headmistress and an advocate of Schitsdrift School. The Portsmouth High School Headmistress was visiting South Africa on holiday in 2015 when her car broke down and the advocate of Schitsdrift School stopped to offer help. Since that meeting there has been a strong relationship between the two schools with staff and children having travelled to Schitsdrift.

Resources

We have used resources within both schools such as paper and pens etc.  Schools take it in turns to host the pupils and we use a mix of teaching and non teaching staff to help staff and guide the pupils.  The pupils meet once every half of term and the aim will be to pass on the expertise from the now Year 6 pupils to the current Year 5 pupils so the project continues.

Pupil Involvement

The project started when the children were in Year 5 and have subsequently now moved up to Year 6.  A mix of genders participate.

Frequency

The event is on-going and open ended.