Matjana Community Preschool
Kaphunga Swaziland
Matjana is a not-for-profit, community preschool in rural Swaziland
Ministry of Education Inspection- Matjana passes with Flying Colours
Written and Compiled by Michelle Brear
In October, Matjana Preschool was visited by Dudu Hlophe, early childhood
education coordinator for the Ministry of Education in the Shishelweni region of
Swaziland. I spoke to Mrs Hlophe and Matjana’s head teacher, Ncobile Mbonane,
about the visit.
“When we registered with the Ministry of Education in June 2007, we were told
that the preschool would be inspected. This is a normal part of registering a
school. The Ministry of Education want to ensure that the facilities meet their
requirements,” Ncobile told me.
“We were looking forward to the visit, but it was also a bit scary,” she
continued. “We’re a small school, we don’t even have electricity. The Ministry
of Education knew that, but I was still just a bit worried that they would find
something wrong.”
So it was perhaps a blessing that Mrs Hlophe and others from the Ministry turned
up unannounced- there was no time to sit around panicking about the impending
visit.
“We have been touring the region surveying all schools and inspecting the
schools which are newly registered and those yet to register,” Mrs Hlophe told
me. This is part of the Ministry of Education’s effort to further regulate early
childhood education in the country and establish where preschools are and are
not available.
I received a phone call from Ncobile on the night of the inspection- she proudly
reported that Matjana Preschool had passed the test. She also told me that she
wasn’t even nervous when the inspectors turned up unannounced (although I’m
convinced that was a lie!).
I then phoned Mrs Hlophe to ask her what she thought of the school.
“We were very impressed,” she told me. “Matjana met all the Ministry of
Education’s requirements for a preschool which is very rare in the rural areas
of Swaziland. Many schools in rural Shishelweni are operating without the basic
necessities like a play area and proper desks. Matjana Preschool has excellent
facilities- it’s the kind of preschool I’d expect to find in town, not in a
rural area.”
We’re all extremely proud to be compared to a “town” school- not because it’s a
competition but because we believe all kids deserve a great education early on
in life– regardless of where they live.
Matjana Preschool has come along way since its beginning less than two years
ago, when I imagine Mrs Hlophe would probably have compared us to a rural school
and found a few things that needed improving– including the old desks.
And the school would not be where it is today without the support of our many
sponsors- without your money, time and energy, we wouldn’t even be able to pay
our teachers basic allowances. We certainly wouldn’t have beautiful, brand new
desks and chairs, a world class swing set (you’ll hear more about the epic
adventure of an American family who came to build this for us in a future
edition of the newsletter), books, toys and all the other things that ensure the
education at Matjana Preschool is high class.
We thank you all very much for your support and hope you feel just as proud of
the “town” preschool you have helped us build in rural Swaziland.
