Mukelo Hlongwane

As a teacher, I am always fulfilled by seeing my students succeed. My goal is to make them realise and fulfil the ‘... highest, truest expressions of [themselves] as human beings’ (Oprah Winfrey).

I have gained experience in teaching and tutoring students at different levels of schooling–from high school and intensively at the university level. In teaching all my students, my main goal is to ensure they succeed and travel with a different view of the world. ‘You are a teacher everywhere!’, someone said. My students consult with me in the student centre, in the campus corridors, in the library, and on the bus to and from campus! It's very awkward but rewarding when they say, ‘Oh! I see it now!’ That is the actuality of teaching and stands at the foundation of much of my teaching philosophy: to turn souls from the ‘world of becoming into that of being’ (Plato).

I am currently a third-year BEd student at the University of Johannesburg (UJ), specialising in high school Science Education. I have two excellence awards from UJ: UJeniusand Golden Key International Honour.

My pedagogical approaches are underpinned by the Bruneian perspective that the curriculum is ‘spiral’ and most importantly, by the modern theory of connectivism. I always endeavour to make scientific knowledge accessible with success and I believe that science can be fascinating when taught properly. My latest interest has been in teaching Physical Sciences qualitatively since it is taught mathematically in many South African high schools, leading to the loss of richness of the subject and an uneasy transition from high school to higher education.

I am also interested in the science of learning and always utilise its principles to plan and design learning experiences that are perfectly aligned with and responsive to the needs of the rapidly changing world, drawing inspiration from Gravett’s book: Teaching for Learning in a Fast-Changing World. I am competent in using the following ICTs for teaching: Canva, Blackboard, Moodle, GeoGebra, PhET Simulations, Microsoft Office, Kahoot, GimKit, Quizziz,and many other game shows. I am also skilled in CAPS curriculum implementation, mediation of marking memoranda and designing virtual classrooms and online learning content.

My other interests are science curriculum development, science literacy, the nature of science, sustainable development goals, NSC diagnostic reports on gateway subjects, and the 21st-century approach to teaching.