Lerato Radingwana is the firstborn of 4 children with two younger sisters and a brother. While she comes from a challenging socio-economic background, she said that her parents have cemented a positive outlook on her and her siblings, encouraging them to be hardworking and confident. She is the first member of her family to study towards a degree, so she feels that there is great pressure on her to succeed.
She is currently in her second year of study for her B. Ed. through UNISA, majoring in Natural Sciences, Technology and Mathematics in the Intermediate Phase (Grades 4 to 7). She also shared that, through the GTI internship, she is gaining the skills, knowledge and expertise of what teaching is and she believes that she will be better equipped when she completes her degree. She is currently placed at St Mark’s Primary School and involved in extracurricular activities in her community that are helping her to grow personally and professionally.
While Lerato considers herself to be an “average” learner, she believes that she works hard and ensures that she completes all required tasks. She furthermore shared that, throughout her high school years, she witnessed how average and struggling learners were often ignored and not given enough time and attention. She knew early on that she wanted to change that and become a teacher to each and every learner, saying “I want to give my learners the confidence and break the stereotype and produce top achievers academically and personally”.
Lerato added: “Lastly, I remember in primary school, when I was in the Foundation Phase, Mrs Thobejane, my class teacher, would give me chalk and instruct me to teach my peers. At that time I did not know what it meant, but I carried out the lesson. I am now thankful for the opportunity she gave me. She saw potential in me that I have been ignoring, but everything makes sense now; I was born to be a teacher”.
