On Friday, 21 July 2023, the City’s Training and Development branch hosted the City’s annual Adult Reading Competition for City staff members who are enrolled as students in the Adult Education and Training (AET) programme. This year’s competition saw participants from suburbs such as Mitchells Plain; Khayelitsha; Imizamo Yethu and Kraaifontein compete for trophies according to their reading abilities. The competition was held at the DHL Stadium in Green Point and Alderman Theresa Uys, the Mayoral Committee Member for Corporate Services was also in attendance to encourage the contestants during the day’s proceedings. Read more below:
The AET reading competition is hosted annually to showcase the progression of literacy and numeracy skills of the employees registered on the AET programme. The competition is designed to encourage a culture of reading to increase literacy skills within the workplace, this includes increased language comprehension, public speaking abilities, improved vocabulary and spelling.
Sixteen contestants participated in the Adult Reading competition. The following staff members were awarded trophies for first position:
AET Level 1
- Nontsizi Qhekeza age 50, from Kraaifontein who works within the City’s Sports and Recreation department at the Kraaifontain depot
AET Level 2
- Vanessa Apolis age 41, from Lavender Hill who works within the City’s Electricity Generation and Distribution department at the Retreat depot
AET Level 3:
- Simpiwe Luvatsha age 53, from Khayelitsha who works within the City’s Water and Sanitation directorate from the Hillstar Depot
AET Level 4:
- Andre Martin age 50, from Mitchells Plain who works within the City’s Sports and Recreation department from the Strandfontain Pavilion depot
‘The majority of the contestants this year were older than 50, this demonstrates the sense of hope our adult education and training provides to individuals of all ages as the AET programme provides great support to these learners and offers staff with an opportunity to better themselves. From what I have seen through this competition alone is that learning opportunities such as these definitely boosts self-esteem and confidence and provides them with a hope for their future simply because they took the first step to empower themselves. The contestants read beautifully at the competition and I want to encourage them to continue in this spirit and open their minds to the knowledge that is theirs for the taking,’ said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Corporate Services, Alderman Theresa Uys.
Students within the various AET levels enter the competition voluntarily. The AET Reading Competition was hosted in collaboration with Smartcape Libraries, who provided judges to assess the students reading skills during the competition. The judges used the reading pieces selected in partnership with the AET facilitators based on the curriculum and AET levels.
The core focus of AET is to offer employees across the various directorates an opportunity to obtain their first qualification on the National Qualifications Framework (NQF). Interested staff members are assessed and placed in the applicable levels, between AET Levels 1 to Level 4. Obtaining the General Education and Training Certificate enables employees to access further developmental and promotional opportunities in the City as well as be able to enrol for Grades 10/11, matric and vocational training.
‘The AET programme opens up numerous avenues for the employees as many of them may have been muted by a lack of confidence. The programme brings validation to our staff and further gives recognition to the wealth of knowledge and experience, wisdom and maturity these employees bring and contribute towards service delivery. These humble, dignified and respectful adult learners serve as the backbone of our City. Their contributions to their various directorates is immeasurable. These giants provide a service without status and often go unnoticed. By participating in the AET reading competition, it enhances their abilities for public speaking and this has a major positive impact on how they serve in and outside the City as ambassadors for lifelong learning,’ said Alderman Uys.
Be part of the mission to rescue South Africa, get help registering to vote at check.da.org.za