The good ones

Every year, parents line up in Limpopo, desperate to get their children into Mbili Secondary School in Thohoyandou, which they feel will secure their future. And what do these parents know? They know what we now know — that in 2012, the pass rate at Mbilwi was 99.3%. Out of 421 grade 12 learners, 325 got bachelor’s passes, opening the doors to a university degree.

So why do these parents line up? Why do we send children to school? To gain knowledge, to learn about math, reading and how to interact with others and to grow. We hope that school will make them active citizens and lead them to productive careers.

I have seen the inside of schools in three ways – as a student sitting at a desk, as a teacher standing in front of a chalkboard, and as a film-maker, through the lens of my camera. Being behind the camera always changes me, as I am moved by people who can powerfully articulate what they want, and how they fight for it.

From 2012 to 2013, I traveled around South Africa looking for schools that work. Whether urban or rural, big or small, the one thing that these schools have in common is that they serve disadvantaged communities and have achieved academic success.

These schools are doing well despite hunger, crowded classrooms, lack of toilets and other resources, and sometimes, unresponsive provincial and national governments.

So what do we imagine happens in the classrooms of these schools? And how do our expectations differ based on where these schools are located?

If you see a well-resourced school or if you are a parent whose child attends one, you likely have assumptions about the kind of education the children are getting. In comparison, do you have any expectations when you hear about “struggling schools?” We often assume that these schools are failing children, whether due to poor leadership, lack of resources, or poverty. And they often are.

But what I have seen defies many of these expectations and our stereotypes. When I drove up the gravel road to Mpumelelo Secondary School in Laskop, KwaZulu Natal, I knew what they lacked but I also knew their success. I imagine if you drove by, you might not expect a thing.

On paper we have policies and we build education systems. Sometimes they work, often they don’t. We use statistics to assess schools, examine progress. What is often missing are the voices of the people who work in the schools themselves. Through my work, I have heard these voices. Of course, we need these numbers, but it is when we engage with an actual person, an actual place that we can really start to figure out what makes schools work

These films are not about education systems. I picked up the camera to tell stories of schools that shift the paradigm.

These are stories of determined and resilient young people who arrive at school at 6:00 am for mandatory study or a lesson on Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet taught by their principal.

They are stories of teachers who have concrete strategies and get students to perform calculus with the same energy and love as Shakespeare’s sonnets.

These are stories of committed principals who lead with a philosophy and vision that is deeply felt throughout the school. These men and women fight and sacrifice for their students because they know what’s at stake.

I have visited every province in South Africa – from the dry isolation of the Northern Cape on the Namibian border, to the rolling green hills of the Eastern Cape, where cows roam across the road from the schools, to schools in densely packed townships where many students live in shacks and schools are often safe havens.

I’ve been to schools with 2221 students and with 600 students, classrooms of up to 98 students – where the principal told me that was better than the 102 last year.

When I started this project, I had a list of factors in mind that make schools work– good teaching, extra classes, continuous assessment, engaging parents. Check, check, check, check. This happens at all good schools. It is critical to explore these elements, but it is the stories of people that take us so much deeper into a school and help us understand what makes it tick.

“There is no recipe for success,” one principal in Soweto told me. It can be simple – good leaders who hold teachers accountable.

And what is revolutionary is sometimes obvious. One principal told me that the main reason her school works is because students are in class on time, teachers are in class on time and they are teaching. The question we should ask is why is this not the norm.

In schools that work, principals recognize the obstacles in front of them, but say they just work hard with what they have. Despite bumps in the road and overwhelming challenges, leaders find a way to move forward. Some do this by empowering teachers to be agents of change, others use a combination of love and discipline to make school feel like home, others regularly adapt strategies in order to help students achieve.

Principals William Hornimaan and Edward Gabada both teach. Hornimaan would much rather be in the classroom than behind a desk. Gabada uses his students’ good results to show his teachers that success is possible.

The key to Principal Bonginkosi Maphanga’s success is expectations. Amid continuing poverty, so much of the community, including Maphanga, put their eggs in one basket – the school. He works tirelessly to imbue high expectations and show the power of an institution to transform a community. If you look at how Maphanga’s school was when it was started, you can see how his hard work has paid off.

These leaders I have seen manage their schools effectively and hold high expectations of teachers and learners. They create an environment of discipline and commitment to learning, while providing emotional support. Many learners told me that their school feels like home, their teachers and principal like parents.

People often ask, well if they are getting 100% pass rates, are the students actually getting good enough results to study further? All of these principals know that a basic pass won’t take their students very far. Especially when the bar is set so low. You only have to get 35% to pass the matric exams in South Africa.

These principals are not just aiming for the 100% pass rate, but for the real prize — 100% quality passes that ensure further education, better jobs and more hopeful futures for their students. In 2013, at Mbilwi, 325 students qualified for university.

These expectations flow down to students at all the schools. In schools that work, many students dream more than they worry. They have been witnesses to the transformation in their country. They are eager to contribute to it.

There was one message that unified the students at these schools – Education is the key to the future.

Knowledge, one of 2,221 students at Thengwe Secondary School in Limpopo, told me that he always thought that urban schools were better than his, until his school won a national Moot court competition. Now he knows that his school is equal. And his dreams are too.

The truth is the students’ resiliency contributes to the quality of the school. It is not just the leaders, principals or teachers, it is the investment and the strength of the students who push one another. I always ask students what their vision is for the future. They tell me that they want to go to university, they want to be doctors and engineers and lawyers and teachers, but almost everyone also wants to provide for their family and plow back into their community in attempts to change the circumstances.

Their teachers hope to get them there.

In schools that work, teachers bring energy to the classroom, engage students in the lesson, and work to meet the needs of students on all levels. They understand that the profession is bigger than just themselves.

And what teacher doesn’t relish the achievement of their students. As one told me, “when students pass, it’s like it’s your party every day.”

Over and over again, teachers expressed a unique goal — to produce active citizens who can contribute to the country. This isn’t just about academics for them. It is so much more. They fight for their students. And they push students to fight for themselves. To reach past the poverty and unemployment they see in their communities, past the expectations or lack of, that some may have for them, and see something beyond.

So two thoughts:

Just imagine what could happen if we could harness the energy of these schools and spread it across the country? How could we replicate the success of these schools that work to transform other schools in disadvantaged communities that also have limited resources.

And perhaps a more exciting idea, given the current success of these schools that work with only a few resources, just imagine what they could do if they were given access to all the resources that are available. Imagine if every student at those schools had all doors open to them. What it would it look like to level the playing field?

Through the lens of my camera I have been able to witness to diverse school communities, each with their own stories, but all moving towards the same goal. Teachers who understand how to nurture learner potential and who extend themselves as counselors and parents, as well as educators. Principals who work tirelessly to maintain effective institutions so that teaching and learning can run the way they are supposed to, all with a single focus that their students find a place in the outside world. Finally the lens has shown students with goals, who want to be active members of the new South Africa and transform their community and country.

They know what matters. But it is when everyone decides that this should matter that the real change can begin.

Molly Blank, Director, Dispatch Films
www.dispatchfilms.com, www.thegoodonesfilm.com