Edu Tour 2008

SA Partners is pleased to announce its third annual education tour, Overcoming Apartheid’s Legacy: Education Reform in the New South Africa, from Thursday, July 17 to Wednesday, July 30, 2008.  The trip begins with a tour of Johannesburg and Soweto, which includes a tour of Constitutional Hill and the Apartheid Museum.  Participants will lodge in the eclectic neighborhood of Melville, whose main road features a variety of shops and restaurants.  Next, participants will visit Rosebank and its famous African Market, followed by dinner and a live performance at the Market Theatre.  Two City Year South Africa-affiliated schools will be visited.

Next, the tour moves on to East London, where participants will visit A.W. Barnes School, an under-resourced primary school in the economically disadvantaged area of Parkside followed by Sterling High School, a well-resourced, former “Model C” high school.  The contrasting school visits always make for stimulating conversation.

Moving on to Alice, the delegation will visit the University of Fort Hare, meeting with our partners in the Department. of Library and Information Sciences to discuss the teacher/librarian trainings in the Melani Cluster.  Participants will then spend a full day and a half in the Melani Cluster, sharing best practices with teaching staff, meeting administration, and observing in the classroom. 

Finally, the tour arrives in Cape Town, continuing with a city tour and visits to the District Six Museum, Robben Island, Table Mountain, and Cape Point Peninsula.  The delegation will also be the guest of the progressively-modeled LEAP Maths and Science School. 

Past participants can’t say enough about the richness of their experiences.  2007 Education Tourist, Maggie Doben of Cambridge Friends School said, “The trip transformed my understanding of South Africa.  It gave me a new lens to use as I plan curriculum, the capacity to look differently at inequities in American schools, new friends and colleagues, and a spectacular travel experience both personally and professionally.”

Application deadline is February 22, 2008.  Please contact Kate Sipples at ksipples@sapartners.org for more information.