Goza Primary School, Soweto

We visited Goza Primary School in Soweto to deliver ABCA books. Goza Primary is a very deprived school with lots of challenges. There are over 1600 students at the school, with big classes of up to 55 students. The students come from a nearby squatter camp and live in very poor, cramped conditions. They don’t have books at home, and don’t have a culture of reading or good role models for reading.

The school is trying very hard to instill a culture of reading in their students, which isn’t easy. They also run a reading program to help those students who can’t read. The school recently set up a library which doubles up as a storeroom. They were very happy to receive ABCA books to boost their library and to encourage students to read. Those students who were always interested in reading can now also have books to read. The students who came to the library when we were there were very happy to see the books, but were very hesitant to read to us. Hopefully, as their reading ability gets stronger, this will change.

During the break, we saw the students lining up to receive a hot meal provided by the school. This is usually their only meal of the day as they often don’t get food at home. The school has two vegetable gardens where they grow a variety of vegetables to supplement the meals provided for the students.

Although this is a very poor school, it is neat and well kept. Fortunately, they have managed to secure some sponsors, who have provided solar panels for electricity, Jojo tanks for water, and computers for the students to use in the library. The staff were friendly and welcoming, and we got a real sense of the love they have for the children they teach on a daily basis. We are very happy to have helped the school by providing them with ABCA books.

Lauren Klevansky

October 2023