INSTITUTIONALIZED CHILD CARE IN URBAN SOUTH AFRICA

Each of the rooms had at least one adult staff member present, which included me,
Warrick, and a variety of care mothers. Students divided themselves and worked on
homework assignments from a variety of subjects.
I asked Nando how many subjects he had to balance, and he responded with ten. I
told him I could probably guess them all, and after some trial and error, I was able to
determine what was a typical course load looked like for the children at 5Cees. Students
take a language class and two other secondary languages. This intensive focus on
languages was typical in South Africa, although it seemed most children did not attribute
language classes as actually helpful in developing linguistic skills. Children typically
learn other dialects in natural settings, and few master a language like Afrikaans where
exposure is primarily through school. Courses are rounded out with physical science,
history, accounting, mathematics, physical education, civics, and another elective. A
couple of times I was asked if I knew Afrikaans so I could help with homework in that
subject. I initially said no, but then offered more support when I realized the extent of the
help they needed was in learning how to use an English-to-Afrikaans dictionary.
Study Time
Throughout study time, I found the majority of the students to be diligent with their
homework, however a few of them took the opportunity to preoccupy themselves with
less academic tasks to delay actual study. The beginning of the school year provided the
students with a chance to obsess with wrapping their textbooks in a protective material.
Many of the students’ homework assignments included factoring out exponents or
identifying chemical compounds. On more than a few occasions, the materials were too
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