- A Soweto high school teacher has spent his own money on food, shoes and transport for learners in need since 2020.
- The teacher buys R400 worth of food monthly for a Grade 10 student he doesn’t teach, keeping him from dropping out to work instead.
A high school teacher in Soweto spends his own money every month buying food for a student he doesn’t even teach.
The Grade 10 learner had been working instead of attending school. The teacher stepped in.
“There’s one grade 10 learner that I don’t teach. I assist him with buying food worth R400 every month,” he said.
He described the student as good, humble and respectful, and said he wanted to do what he could to keep him in school.
“The learner now attends school every day and also gets food from the school as well,” the teacher said.
It isn’t an isolated case. Since 2020, the teacher has spent between R1,500 and R2,000 of his own money helping learners with food, toiletries, school shoes, matric jackets and ties. He also helps students who live far from school with transport money when they stay late for extra lessons.
One family has received food and transport support from him for about three years. The siblings are now in Grade 11.
To fund it, the teacher sells colognes on the side and puts 10% of that income toward learners in need.
“It feels good doing good for others,” he said.
He said learners face a wide range of struggles, including poor parental involvement, poverty, child-headed homes, teenage pregnancy, and alcohol and substance abuse.
“It’s not really a must that we do more than we should, but this profession comes with a lot of emotional attachment which results in us doing more than we should,” he said.
He said his salary doesn’t cover what the job actually demands of him.
“I don’t really earn enough for what I do, and I do what I can with what I have, but it’s never enough,” he said.
His story comes as South Africa prepares to honour teachers at the 26th National Teaching Awards, taking place on Thursday, 1 October, at the Birchwood Hotel and Conference Centre in Benoni. President Cyril Ramaphosa is set to address the ceremony, held under the theme “Uniting for Excellence: Elevating Achievement, Empowering Educators to Shape SA’s Future.”
More than 133 teachers have made it through the national selection process this year. They will be recognised across 15 categories, including primary and secondary school teaching, mathematics, school leadership and the National Best Teacher Award.
The Department of Basic Education described the awards as a vital initiative to recognise teachers’ extraordinary efforts, often carried out in difficult conditions, and said quality education remains central to addressing poverty, prejudice and conflict.
