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08 February 2019 | Story Thabo Kessah | Photo Thabo Kessah
Gateway 2019
From the left: Mookgo Mofokeng, Lethukuthula Nsibande, Siyalungelwa Ntombela, and Chulumanco Mazwi.
The two-week Gateway Orientation programme to introduce first-year students to campus and faculty life on the Qwaqwa Campus,  has been a resounding success – if the first-years’ comments are anything to go by.

“Amazing Race was for me the pinnacle of this programme, as it enabled me to get to know the campus much better. It was such a refreshing experience, despite my sore thighs that are still hurting. I also loved the Step Up for success initiative,” said Chulumanco Mazwi from Mthatha in the Eastern Cape. Chulumanco has enrolled for a BAdmin degree, which will “enable me to interact with people, particularly in the corporate world”.

From Paballong Village in Qwaqwa came a budding scientist, Mookgo Mofokeng. “The programme has afforded me the opportunity to interact with a number of students from different places such as KwaZulu-Natal, Eastern Cape, and Gauteng,” she said. “I have also learnt about the history of the campus that is very close to my heart,” said Mookgo. “This is the campus where I won the prize for my Eskom Expo for Young Scientists project, with my partner and I displaying our water-extracting project as learners from the Beacon Secondary School here in Qwaqwa. For more on this, please watch the environmental television programme 50/50 on SABC 2 on 17 February 2019.”

Coming from Newcastle in KwaZulu-Natal is ‘the future businessman in the computing sector’, Lethukuthula Nsibande. “The Gateway orientation programme was so much fun, as it enabled me to see teamwork as an integral part of our development as first-years. Considering that I want to pursue business in the interesting world of computers, I have seen that interacting with others is crucial,” said Lethukuthula, a BSc IT (Computer Science and Management) student.

From Johannesburg, Gauteng, comes Siyalungelwa Ntombela, a BEd (Intermediate Phase – Life Sills and Social Sciences) student who believes her studies will enable her to give back to her community. “I want to educate our future generations and make a difference. I found Gateway to be educational and entertaining. We have learnt a lot about university life and the campus in general. I now know about the services offered by the clinic, where the Mandela Hall is, and so on. Interacting and learning from our mentors was also one of the highlights,” she added.

News Archive

Internet Broadcast Project wins at International Enterprise Video Awards
2014-08-11

Video: Internet Broadcast Project

In April this year, the ICTISE (ICT Innovation in School Education) division won the first place at the Enterprise Video Awards held in Madison, Wisconsin, USA. Their Internet Broadcast Project (IBP) was the overall winner in the Innovation category – competing against universities and other training institutions from across the world.

The IBP is a collaborative project between the ICTISE and the Free State Department of Education (FSDoE). Broadcasting from the South Campus studio in Bloemfontein, teachers use specialised web-casting technology to present lessons that reach 68 education centres. Lessons cover a range of subjects and broadcast in real time to teachers and learners from Grades 8 to 12, covering 40 Free State towns, including the most rural areas.

Head of the ICTISE Project, Sarietjie Musgrave said, “Each participating school is equipped with 24/7 uncapped internet access, an all-in-one computer (computer, data projector and sound system), a document camera and a printer – the same equipment used in the studio by the expert teachers.

“The technology provided allows learners to communicate with the expert teacher in the studio during a broadcast to the school or learner at no cost. Lessons can be downloaded on to various devices and re-used during teaching time, shared with neighbouring schools, or taken home by learners to help with homework or for revision.

“To date, the IBP catalogue contains over 2 000 video lessons and during 2013 alone, the 68 schools accessed and used these videos 69 305 times. The project has the potential to reach more than 40 000 learners and 1 765 teachers every week.”

Innovation and sustainability form the backbone of this project. Support is provided to teachers and learners in Mathematics, Maths Literacy, Physical Science, Life Science, Geography, English, Accounting, Economics and Business Studies.


The ICTISE has a dedicated technical team to support schools. During broadcasts there is a dedicated helpline and on-site technical support, even in the remotest areas.

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