keeping you on the MaP - Maru-a

11.14
compass
the
keeping you on the MaP
Freaky Friday!
On the morning of Friday
the 17th of October, for the
last school day before their
IGCSEs, the Form Fives were
all dressed in orange overalls.
Their slogan for the morning
was ‘Dangerous Freedom over
Peaceful Slavery’.
white and black suits; Karishma
Mahajan led the dance. This
was followed by an Arabian
dance with Abhi Arora dressed
in white Arabian robes.
on top of the frame shouted
out and shook the bars as they
represented the inner artists
trying to break free of “society’s
chains”.
Afterwards, there were hip hop
and R&B dance performances.
Asante Waugh back flipped
on to the stage to start off the
dance, and then girls in black
outfits performed. Boys in ghoul
masks danced as Bokang
Makubate and Monageng
Mokgachane rapped.
Cheng Lu beautifully played
a traditional Chinese string
instrument, called a Guzheng,
with tortoise shells around her
fingers.
The assembly began with a
group singing ‘I’m Coming
Home’ with Rebekah Taylor
as their lead vocal and Kgosi
Molokomme
beat
boxing.
Lefika Otisitswe did a few
hilarious impersonations of
An enormous frame was rolled
teachers.
onto the stage. A few students
Then there were two Indian climbed it, as a recorded voice
dance routines. In the first, spoke about “releasing the artist
a large group of girls were within.” Lefika Otisitswe spoke
dressed in colorful, traditional about the importance of drama
Indian costumes. In the second, in life and his determination to
there were six girls dressed in perform on stage. The students
Finally, Khaya Groth performed
an astonishing solo on a set of
drums, blindfolded, as Hani Thusi
and Leatile Monthe clapped
and hit the floor in time to the
beat. To bring their spectacular
final assembly to a close, the
entire form jumped on stage,
dancing and chanting, “Freaky
Friday!”
~ Ruby Njonde, Shivali Ittan
the compass
11.14
mid-term, term three
MaP Student Srikaveri Sriram is Top English
Olympiad Student in Africa in Age Group
brought to you by the
MaP journalists team of
Mr Hagger (editor)
Saira Desai (3J)
Shivali Ittan (3L)
Lesedi Kereteletswe (2L)
Naledi Ketsitlile (3M)
Ian Kitheka (3K)
Yolisa Letshwene (4J)
Aobakwe Nkuelang (LM6)
Ruby Njonde (3L)
Kaya Panchalingam (3K)
Malebo Seleka (2J)
Ruth Tedla (2J)
with thanks to
Ms Jobson
Ms Moilwa
Ms Richardson
Ms Saplontai
Mr Tsimako
Unasimba Moesi (1J)
Jip Vader (1K)
Yue Tong Zhang (1K)
goodbyes
This term’s goodbyes will
appear in a special mini
Compass at the end
of the year
bundles of brightness
comprehensive information
on Bundles of Brightness
activity will appear in the 2014
Yearbook
Follow the MaP news
as it happens :
www.maruapula.org
twitter : @maruapulaschool
email : comms@maruapula.org
facebook : Maru-a-Pula School
tel : 391 2953
Srikaveri with Mr Taylor, her family and winner’s certificate
Former Broadhurst Primary and current Form One MaP Student
Srikaveri Sriram has been ranked first in English in her age group
among 3261 candidates on the African continent, in the
International Olympiad for English Language in November 2013.
Srikaveri received a prize of £350 (P5270) for her achievement.
MaP Graduate Shines at UN Climate Summit
Pato Kelesitse, a 2011 MaP graduate now in her final year at
Botswana Accountancy College, was recently chosen as the
only representative of African youth at the UN Climate Summit
in New York on September 23rd.
Earlier this year, Pato entered the Climate Reality Project, which
encourages young people all over the world to create a video
which asks their government ‘Why?’ and ‘Why not?’ on the
subject of their nation’s responses to climate change (www.
youtube.com/watch?v=odEvpomJ8jE).
“I’ve been interested in climate issues since I was in primary
school,” she says. “Unfortunately I wasn’t involved in any of the
SPEs (at MaP) that were climate related because they almost
always clashed with other activities that I was interested in, but
the good thing was we had activities like ‘stoop, pluck and
place’ where one could be involved.”
Pato heard about the ‘Why? Why not?’ project from MaP art
teacher Sedireng Mothibatsela. She encourages current Map
students “to nurture and feed their interest. Every small thing
they do counts, from picking up litter to using water carefully,
and sharing knowledge so we are a more climate-conscious
society.”
MaP Students Win Monash Essay Competition
Three Upper Sixth MaP students have won an essay
competition for sixth form students held by Monash
University, Melbourne, in Gaborone schools. The topic
chosen for the competition essays was ‘What do you
think are the technology trends that will change the world
in the next 50 years?’
Students were allowed to research the topic but their
essays were written (without notes) in one hour under exam
conditions. The same competition was held for schools in
South Africa and Zimbabwe, where only one prize winner
was selected per school, but the Monash judges were so
impressed by the standard of entries from Botswana that
they decided to award three prizes per school. Cyriac Cyriac (centre) was awarded a 1st Prize of
an Ipod Air, and Neo Molopo (left) and George Managoba (right) won 2nd and 3rd prizes of an
Ipod mini and Ipod respectively.
~ Ms Jobson
International School Library Month
The month of October was the International School
Library Month (ISLM), a month to celebrate and
draw attention to school libraries.
To kick start ISLM activities MaP library had the Form
Ones designing book marks, which will be duplicated
and distributed to students.
Various other activities, such as the game ‘30
Seconds’, were held every Friday afternoon to give
students an opportunity to show their creativity; and
Students enjoying ‘30 Seconds’
from the debate on “To Wear or Not to Wear School
Uniform” we can certainly say that Maru-a-Pula has students who can defend their stand.
The popular ‘Reading by Candle Light’ brought in almost all boarders to the library. Fundraising
was done through the ‘Donut a Book’ and civvies day; funds derived from these will go to a
Women’s Shelter and Malwelwe.
~ Ms Moilwa
MaP Students Win Prizes in 48 Hour Film Project
The 48 Hour Film Project is an annual competition that
allows all kinds of people from all over the world,
professional or amateur, to write, film, edit and submit a
short film in only 48 hours. Participants from Gaborone had
to shoot a movie from 7:00 PM on the 10th of October to
7:00 PM on the 12th. The movies were screened at New
Capitol Cinemas Riverwalk on the 19th of October, and
awards were given out on the 21st.
Two teams from MaP participated : The Phoenix and
A frame from ‘Everybody Dies’
Something Productions. The Phoenix shot a movie called
‘Everybody Dies’ and Something Productions shot one titled ‘Hegira?’.
The Phoenix won the Best Use of Prop Award and one member of the team, Tawanda Mulalu
(5M), won the Most Promising Filmmaker award. Something Productions won Best Set, and a
member of their group, Tumo Masire (4J), won Best Sound Design.
“It was terrifying and fun, but at least we got a prize,” said Jip Vader (1K), a member of The
Phoenix. “I hope that I can do this again.”
~ Yue Tong Zhang
New Faces
Mr Masaudzo Sinoya has recently joined the Chemistry Department, having
taught A Level & GCSE Chemistry extensively abroad in schools including
Mark Rutherford in Bedfordshire, England and Cambridge English School in
Hawally, Kuwait, where he had been prior to his arrival at MaP.
He says teaching should be a two-way process and not just teachercentered, with kids being equally involved in the learning process. “My
ideal student is inquisitive, shows initiative and is prepared to ask questions
when in doubt,” he says. Mr Sinoya also expects to learn more about
Botswana and MaP culture.
He is currently involved with the Eco-Warriors, as he is hugely interested
in the environment, and expects to work with the Maths, Science and
Technology club soon. Since he has played volleyball at college level, Mr
Sinoya wishes to organize a MaP male volleyball team during his time at
MaP.
~ Aobakwe Nkuelang
Born in Ethiopia and raised in Kenya, Ms Berhan Hagos was no stranger
to Africa when she applied for the Princeton in Africa Program. She has
been teaching History here this term, and will also teach English in the
forthcoming year.
Ms Hagos is really enjoying Botswana, and so far she has found Gaborone
to be “extremely comfortable”. She is looking forward to experiencing and
exploring Botswana. She has been to the Chobe National Park and said it
was “beautiful”. Besides teaching, she likes to read, play tennis and travel.
During the Christmas holiday she plans to journey to India.
~ Lesedi Kereteletswe, Malebo Seleka
Elias Pollack schooled at Cornell College, New York. He is here on a
basketball coaching break, having travelled to Italy with his college’s team
and around South America, Europe and North America. He describes
Botswana as a “very chilled, relaxed place, different from New York.
Everybody is really friendly and helpful. For example, when we went up to
Kasane over the break, this guy we didn’t even know offered to drive us all
the way back, which in New York you’ll never find.”
Ben Levander schooled at Dartmouth College, New York and is helping
the P.E Department, as well as teaching Geography.
He is a huge soccer fanatic and is happy about being in a place with so
many people that are as enthusiastic about soccer as he is. He has also
tried out to play professional soccer with the Notwane team, and trains
regularly with them.
~ Naledi Ketsitlile
Hani Thusi Publishes Book
MaP student Hani Thusi (5K) will launch a book he has written, Little
Yungo : The Village Saviour, at the President Hotel on November 27th
at 10am.
“It is basically a short children’s book that follows a young boy,Yungo,
as he attempts to lift up his village by starting up a business,” says Hani.
“In the story I use magic realism to communicate that being disciplined,
diligent and passionate about what you do pays off. I believe the
book will contribute to molding the next generation of Batswana into
becoming great and responsible people who will carry this nation to
great heights.”
Wiggle Waggle Walk
The new term brought with it exciting new events for the MaP
community, one of which was the Wiggle-Waggle Dog Walk held on the
11th September at the BSPCA animal shelter in Broadhurst. The annual
event was planned in such a way that anyone could attend the event
and walk one of the shelter hounds along a 4km long course. Entry
into the event was P40 for adults and P20 for children. For a fee of P30,
participants could also bring their own dogs to the event, provided that
their dogs had leads and a valid vaccination certificate was shown to
the BSPCA caretakers upon entry into the event.
Ms Marsh, along with the BSPCA service, assembled a group of MaP
students to take part in this year’s event. As caretakers from the shelter
led the way along the sprawling four km course through Broadhurst, MaP
students got to give back to their immediate community by walking a
few of these shelter dogs, some of which had spent years in poor shelter
conditions sharing kennels with countless other canines.
Due to low community involvement at the shelter, most of these shelter
dogs rarely had a chance to leave the confines of their kennels, so such
an event was much needed. Not even the overcast weather of the
Saturday morning could dampen the mood of some of these hounds as
they scampered around Broadhurst on a walk that seemed to end far
too soon from the dogs’ perspective.
~ Aobakwe Nkuelang
On the 13th and 14th of October four debaters from our MaP Debate
team went to fight it out at Botswana’s Bureau of Standards (BOBS).
Ms Marsh with ‘Tlhokaina’
(The Nameless One)
Debating
Tshepang Dipholo, George Managoba, Kaya Panchalingam and One
Pusumane won the Debate tournament of three rounds. The team
didn’t participate in the first round since there was an uneven amount
of teams. After anxiously waiting for the second round pairings the team
went into the next round with high hopes, and prevailed as winners.
The motions were on the topic of standards and the theme and final
motion was “Standards Level the Playing field”. With a very competitive
and tight final against Rainbow the MaP team reigned victorious.
Adding to the great victory, two of the MaP speakers placed as best
speakers, and Joel Binu (3K) and Ruby Njonde (3L) got second and third
best essays respectively in the essay competition, which was written
about the theme.
The MaP Debate Society remains undefeated for the year so far.
~ Kaya Panchalingam
Proud team manager
Mr Paya with the trophy
Campus Clean-up
The campus clean-up was held the first Saturday of the term. Nearly
90 students participated in the clean-up. With a team of dedicated
teachers, the clean-up crew scoured the Maru-a-Pula Campus,
which was divided into ten zones, for litter and trash.
The effort helped to beautify the campus and promote a safe, clean,
and comfortable learning and working environment for all during
Term Three. Mr Taylor hosted all of the volunteers and staff for lunch
following the morning’s work to celebrate a job well done!
~ Ms Richardson
Angela Kaspers (5J)
Ms Saplontai’s Romanian Reunion
The whole trip was like a dream. One week before the
Independence Long Weekend I received an email and several
phone calls from some of my high school colleagues, inviting me
to a reunion. At first I said clearly that I was unable to attend,
due to the cost and distance. They insisted and offered to pay
all the expenses. I was valedictorian; my colleagues said they
could not conceive the idea of having the reunion without me.
By an extraordinary coincidence, on the same day I received
the invitation, I found the speech I had delivered at my high
school prom…
I left Botswana on Thursday 25 October and arrived in my town,
Vatra Dornei, the next day at midnight. Vatra Dornei is a wellknown spa and ski resort in the Carpathian Mountains in north-east
Romania. The reunion was organized by one of our colleagues
(and good friend, now Mayor of the town) Ilie Bonches, another
colleague, Doina Rohozneanu, and my beloved childhood
friend (since we were two years old), Dr Sanda Gradinaru (Dr in
Electronics).
On Saturday at 10am we had the registration at my school. It
was much more emotional than I had expected. Each alumnus
talked about his or her achievements in life : their professions,
their families… Some of our professors were there, amongst them
the Professor of Romanian Language and Literature, Madame
Lungulescu, 91 years old; mentally and physically perfect. Also
amazingly fit was my History teacher, Madame Ostaficiuc, one
of my favourite teachers.
At 5pm we started the banquet in the restaurant of a beautiful
hotel in the mountains. One of our colleagues, ex-admiral and
now a well-known writer, was the presenter. There were lots of
jokes, and diplomas for the girls - I was voted Miss Prom 2014. Lol!
I was very pleased to hear that most of my colleagues knew of
one of the greatest achievements in my life : climbing Mount
Kilimanjaro with my son; at the time he was the second youngest
to climb it in the world. The food was amazing; there was a lot of
dancing and catching up on our lives.
The next day, Sunday, we met again at 11am, for more food
and teenage years stories. It was sad to hear that some of our
colleagues had passed away due to illness or accidents.
(from top) Ms Saplontai as a primary
school student (wearing bow);
Ms Saplontai with Dr Gradinaru;
Prof Lungulescu
It was a memorable weekend, so short but so sweet. I am now in
touch with some of my colleagues, and we keep on remembering
things from our teenage years. Despite the long voyage and the
tiredness (I probably slept ten hours all together during the sixday trip), I will always cherish the awesome moments I lived in
Romania during my high school reunion.
~ Ms Saplontai
MaP Student Nandini Kochar crowned Miss India Botswana
Nandini Kochar, a Form Five MaP Student, was crowned Miss India Botswana
at a glittering ceremony held at the Lyric Theatre in Johannesburg on August
30th.
The contest was part of the Miss India South Africa 2014 beauty pageant, and
was inaugurated by the Indian High Commissioner to South Africa. Nandini
will be representing Botswana in the Miss India Worldwide Beauty Pageant
early next year.
Term Three Sports Results
Cricket
Date : 24 September
U19 ISSSA Cricket @ Westwood
Opponent : Westwood
Result : Win, by 5 runs
Date : 18 October
U16 JMS Cricket Invitational
Result : 4th place
Boys Football
Date : 26 September
U19 ISSA Tournament @ ISSA
Opponent : St Conrad
Result : 2-2 (Yash Shah)
Date : 18 October
U16 ISSA Football
Festival @ ISSA
Result : 2nd place
Girls Football
Date : 26 September
U19 ISSA Tournament @ ISSA
Opponent : ISSA
Result : 1-1 (Sebaga Rabasha)
Date : 27 September
U19 ISSA Tournament @ ISSA
Opponent : ISSA
Result : 0-3
Date : 27 September
U19 ISSA Tournament @ ISSA
Opponent : ISSA
Result : 1-0 (Wakgotla Moloi)
Date : 18 October
U19 ISSSA Football
Tournament @ LKC
Result : 1st place
Date : 18 October
U14 ISSA Football
Festival @ ISSA
Result : 1st place
Boys Basketball
Date : 3 October
U14 ISSA Basketball
Festival @ ISSA
Result : 5th place
Special Awards :
MVP - Gabriel Christi Michael
Date : 3 October
U16 ISSA Basketball
Festival @ ISSA
Result : 3rd place
Special Awards :
MVP - Owen Jobson,
Kaelo Tibe
Girls Basketball
Date : 3 October
U14 ISSA Basketball
Festival @ ISSA
Result : 5th place
Special Awards :
MVP - Karabo Mpai
Date : 3 October
U16 ISSA Basketball
Festival @ ISSA
Result : 5th place
Girls Volleyball
Date : 27 September
U19 ISSA Volleyball
Festival @ ISSA
Opponent : ISSA
Result : 0-3
Boys Softball
Date : 7 October
U19 ISSSA Softball @ Rainbow
Opponent : Rainbow
Result : 11-6
Date: 14 October
U19 ISSSA Softball @ Westwood
Opponent : Westwood
Result : 6-7
Date : 1 November
U19 ISSSA Softball
Tournament @ Rainbow
Result : 1st place
Girls Softball
Date : 7 October
U19 ISSSA Softball @Rainbow
Opponent : Rainbow
Score : 9-10
Date : 14 October
U19 ISSSA Softball @ Westwood
Opponent : Westwood
Result : 26-11
Girls Football Team, ISSSA Champions;
(from left) Lumbidzane Gwere (3K), Lesedi Serema (3L),
Bame Mabote (3K), Motheo Mantswe (3K)
Date : 1 November
U19 ISSSA Softball
Tournament @ Westwood
Result : 5th place
Form One Sports Derby
On the 24th of October, the Form Ones went to
the International School of South Africa for the
Sports Derby. It was a short trip; lunch was being
served when we arrived and that’s when the
adventure began. The food was not very tasty
but it was the engine that started the vehicle that
led to beautiful friendships with ISSA students.
Later that day, everybody departed to the field.
It was time for the races and games. The races
were 100m, 200m, 800m and 4x100m relay. MaP
came first in the 100m, 800m and 4x100m relay.
The weather was a bit cold, but no-one could
feel it as our bodies were heating up during
the activities and dances. The races passed by
quickly, and soon it was time for the games : the
three-legged race, sack race, egg-and-spoon
race and tug of war. Our boys won all three
rounds of the tug of war. The girls lost round one in
an embarrassing but funny manner; ISSA pulled us
with the rope, leaving us weeping and rolling on
the ground. However, in round two we revealed
our true muscular sides - we pulled them way past
the boundary! In round three they got help from
their boys and we STILL had them on the ground.
Everyone was falling, the eggs were breaking, the
laughter and music were intense; everything was
perfect, imperfectly perfect.
The following morning, after breakfast, we played
our sports. We started off with netball, and our
MaP girls won. Tennis followed, with MaP winning
that too. Basketball was tough for the girls, as they
tied with ISSA; unfortunately, the boys lost. At least
we learned some new cheers!
After lunch, it was time for soccer. The ISSA girls are
extremely talented, and our girls lost the game,
but we tried our very best. Surprisingly, the boys
also lost - a devastating moment for them.
After playing sports, we rested - the best nap we’d
had in ages. Then it was finally time for the ‘Social’.
The girls were dressed to kill, and the boys were
looking handsome. We all learned new dance
moves and it totally went down. Sadly, the social
ended and it started raining cats and dogs - the
most rain we had seen all year. Though we had
been sent to bed, students from both schools
were running around on the field in the rain. It
was a beautiful moment. The night was younger
than us.
(from top) Chedu Mpoloka (1K) and Gerard
Meulenberg (1K) in the 4x100m relays; Farah
Gajadhur (1J), Tebo Ditsele (1K)
and Nida Mallam (1L) battle in the tug-of-war;
Wendy Bankgonne (1L) and Shabbat
Katsande (1J) fight for the ball
We will truly miss the time we spent at ISSA. We
have realized how much we cherish our Form
One.
~ Unasimba Moesi