?Learn to Live
Mission: To provide informal and bridging education for children currently living on the street or in shelters and children's homes for street children.
Background: The Salesian Society is a leading world-wide institution in the field of education, technical and agricultural training of those poor and abandoned children and youth, who lack access to basic needs for survival and development. The Salesians first arrived in South Africa in 1896, starting a school in Cape Town for orphan boys. Their mission is to address the physical, educational and spiritual needs of street youth. The present Salesian Institute Street Youth Projects in Cape Town has four key programmes namely Sixteen Plus outreach and development, the Don Bosco Hostel School of Life, Learn to Live Educational and Learn to Live technical skills training and development.
Learn to Live conducts Adult Basic Education and Training (ABET) Literacy and Numeracy classes, given by qualified teachers, for children from the street who now live in shelters, for children who come directly from the street each day and for the youth in Don Bosco Hostel, other homes and youth at risk from the communities. Leather craft, Wood craft and Metal craft courses provide a means for self-support and the opportunity to become familiar with the workplace without its pressures and fierce competition.
Programmes: Learn to Live has two phases:
Pathway to mainstream education.Learners begin this phase with learning through play, crafts, music, art and drama. Basic numeracy and literacy form the main thrust of classroom activities with the emphasis on improving self-image, motivation, trust of adults and social skills. Life skills are inculcated in an attempt to foster what would have been learnt naturally in a more nurturing family environment. Once the individual learner is settled and eager to progress and is both willing and able he/she is recommended for readmission to a specific grade in mainstream schooling. For those either unable to return to mainstream due to age or learning disabilities, or unwilling to return, a syllabus of functional numeracy and literacy is presented.
Technical training and development. Older youth unlikely to return to mainstream schooling are encouraged to enter the skills and crafts training programme. Here the youths, aged sixteen and older, gain experience of workshop practice and the work ethic and learn basic skills in metal-, leather- and woodcraft. Although the training makes the youth more employable on the job market, there is an emphasis on self-employment. The courses last between ten and twelve weeks. A local college, Sivuyile Technical College, administers the tests and awards the certificates. The trainees are able to earn by selling the articles they make.
Future vision: Learn to Live has enjoyed a steady growth in achievements - namely:
68% of the more settled children in the educational and 61% of the more settled technical trainees stayed in the programme for more than four weeks. This is an achievement because these young people can walk out at any moment, yet they choose to stay;
66% of the less stable children stayed for more than four weeks. The longer they stay the more the possible influence.
there is a significant percentage of children at risk that come from the community. They have dropped out of school. This is a definite future growth area due to problems in the education system.
All the homes and shelters for street children use the facility of the Salesian Institute.
The future vision is to grow these achievements and to be part of the greater social process that creates an open, welcoming community that values youth without regard to gender, race, colour, creed or gender orientation.
?
??