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22 September 2021
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Story Michelle Nöthling
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Photo Supplied
Annemarie Le Roux.
“I love working with children.” This is one of the first things Annemarie le Roux mentions when asked to describe herself. This love for children propelled Annemarie into the field of education and she graduated in 2006 with a BEd in Foundation Phase at the UFS. Annemarie immediately immersed herself in the Deaf community, enriching the lives of children at the Thiboloha School for the Deaf in Qwaqwa and the De la Bat School for the Deaf in Worcester.
The academic world enticed Annemarie back to the University of the Free State (UFS) and she was appointed as a junior lecturer in the Department of South African Sign Language (SASL) and Deaf Studies in 2013. Going from strength to strength, Annemarie completed her master’s degree in SASL in 2019, and published an
article earlier this year that she co-wrote with Marga Stander. In this article, they found that SASL “has become an increasingly popular language that hearing university students want to learn as a second language” and subsequently explored different teaching methods used for this emerging group of interested students.
Although now firmly established in academia, Annemarie is still committed to the practical application of SASL. “I am closely involved in student and community engagement through the
SIGNALS Sign Language student association that helps empower the Deaf community and South African Sign Language.” She also interprets for the Deaf community whenever she gets an opportunity, as well as for Deaf students in class and meetings.
On the importance of Sign Language and the recognition of the Deaf community in South Africa, Annemarie believes it will open greater opportunities for development. “More people will be able to learn SASL, and it might even become a subject in school for hearing children.”
A beauty pageant with a difference
2013-09-06
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Miss Legatum 2013, Kedibone Ndweni, after her crowning.
6 September 2013
Foto: Linda Fekisi |
House Legatum recently hosted its first beauty pageant, Miss Legatum. This pageant, which was like no other ever seen on Kovsie grounds, gave a new definition to the word beauty. With a panel of judges made up of blind students from the Unit for Students with Disabilities (USD) at the University of the Free State, the search was on for a woman with inner beauty.
The guest speaker at the event was Vicki Fourie, Miss Deaf SA 2009 and first princess of Miss Deaf International 2010. Vicki shared how she lost 97% of her hearing ability, her struggles in high school and how she was able to move past all of that.
Judging was solely based on the answers the contestants gave. Out of the beautiful and proficient women who entered, Kedibone Ndweni from House ConLaurês walked away with the title Miss Legatum 2013.