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27 October 2025
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Story Sefako Mokhosoa
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Photo Supplied
Ten Grade 12 learners from Mampoi Secondary School in Phuthaditjhaba.
On 1 October 2025, the Projects and Innovation Directorate in the Faculty of Education at the University of the Free State (UFS) proudly hosted a certificate ceremony to honour ten Grade 12 learners from Mampoi Secondary School in Phuthaditjhaba on the Qwaqwa Campus. These learners completed a Skills Development Initiative and Workshop Series focused on digital literacy and ICT skills – a programme designed to equip rural youth with the tools they need to thrive in a digital world.
The initiative, which ran from May to August 2025, was made possible through a strategic partnership with BANKSETA to bridge the digital divide in rural communities. The learners received hands-on training in essential digital tools. Each learner also received a tablet to support continued learning and personal growth beyond the classroom.
The Director of the office in the Faculty of Education, Dr Kwazi Magwenzi, stressed that digital skills promote independence and self-directed learning. “Grade 12 is a time when learners should manage their studies, meet deadlines, and explore their options,” she said. “Digital fluency supports that autonomy. It enables learners to use online research, interactive tools, e-learning, and collaboration platforms to make learning more effective, flexible, and aligned with their pace and style. In Grade 12, where the stakes are high – with exams, tertiary entrance, and career choices – this ability helps learners become more self-directed, confident, and equipped.”
The programme not only built learners’ confidence in using ICT tools for learning and communication but also prepared them for the technologically driven environments they will encounter in institutions of higher learning.
Beyond developing digital skills, the project offered learners valuable exposure to the university environment, as their training took place on campus. Inspired by the success of this pilot, the Faculty of Education now aims to expand the initiative to reach more schools and learners across the region. The vision is to scale up access to digital education and empower more young people in rural areas with the skills necessary for academic and professional success.
This ceremony marked the conclusion of a successful training programme and the beginning of a long-term commitment to digital empowerment and lifelong learning in rural communities.
Three of UFS Unit for Language Management to international congress
2006-06-12
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Three members of the University of the Free State's (UFS) Unit for Language Management (ULM), namely Prof Theo du Plessis (Director of the ULM), Prof Johan Lubbe (Research Associate of the ULM) and Dr Elbie Truter (Research Associate of the ULM), will be attending the Tenth International Congress of the International Academy of Linguistic Law at the University of Galway, Ireland, from 14-17 June 2006.
This year, the theme of the congress will be “Language Law and Language Rights: The Challenges of Enactment and Implementation”. More than 100 persons will deliver papers at this congress, which enjoys prominent status world-wide. The UFS colleagues are all members of the International Academy of Linguistic Law, and will deliver papers offering perspectives on language regulation within the South African context.
Other South Africans who will also be participating, and with whom the ULM has close professional relationships, are Dr Karel Prinsloo (editor of the well-known journal 50 Plus) and Mr Edward Sambo of the Pan South African Language Board (Pansalb). The ULM’s participation in the congress is the result of a long-term research project, namely, the South African Language Rights Monitor, which was launched three years ago in partnership with Pansalb, and which is also financed by that organisation.
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Prof Theo du Plessis
(Director of the UFS Unit for Language Management) |