It was an occasion for great celebration for the owners of 8 of the Early Childhood Development centres which partner with The Domino Foundation. The ladies were seeing that the many hours of after-hours study had paid off and, bedecked in cap and gown, the coveted National Qualifications Framework (NQF) Level 4 certificates were in their hands. Their journey to obtaining the equivalent of a Grade 12 or Matric qualification had been facilitated by attending TREE (Training and Resources in Early Education), provided the professional training for these women. Nicky Walton, Domino’s Education co-ordinator, said: “We are indebted and thankful to funders who enable these education journeys for ECD owners. Our programme focuses very much on empowering ECD owners to develop themselves and grow their schools, putting them in a strong position to go forward running sustainable small businesses. It is so gratifying to see how these ECD owners have used this training to develop better early learning centres for their young ‘customers. They are seeing the practical impact of improving their preschools’ educational offering on their little charges in the most critical period of their growth when 90% of brain growth and development takes place.”
TREE has trained up 4 856 ECD practitioners and placed 11 toy libraries in 3 provinces and offer current webinars, stand-alone accredited elective units, a fully accredited NQF Level 4 qualification and non-accredited short courses. Upskilling women with small businesses and who have a heart for improving South African children’s early learning experience is central to Domino’s ECD programme. The 8 graduates can now move on into further education or training for even greater quality pre-school education their learners deserve.
One of the graduates, Ntombi Makhube, owner of Siyawunakekela, commented: “I am deeply grateful for The Domino Foundation's generous sponsorship of my studies. The support has not only lifted financial burdens but also filled me with motivation and confidence. Receiving their support has proven to me that hard work can be recognised and supported. Thank you, Domino.”
Nicky added that all of the ECD owners’ studies had been paid for through the generosity of donors who see the foundational value of investing in early education programmes. She invited businesses interested in finding a good investment for their SED spend, and other groups and individuals who want to change an individual and so change a community, to contact her on education@domino.org.za or 031 110 7030.
