Tsau-//Khaeb SS Wins Big at SCAMX 2017

The 10th School Clubs And Museums Exhibition Competition (SCAMX) was held at Otjiwarongo from 12 to 15 September, and proved to be a huge success as 16 schools from 10 regions showed up to exhibit their historical research.

Tsau-//Khaeb Secondary School from Rosh Pinah, who exhibited on the topic ‘Nama Stap Let’s Groove’, won the first prize in the competition.

The school won a trip to Cape Town to attend the Robben Island National Building Schools Camp. The trip will take place from 30 September to 7 October. The pupils will be hosted by the Robben Island Museum who will organise programmes of activities for them.

In addition to winning the first prize, Tsau-//Khaeb Secondary School was also the winner of the University of Namibia’s press book prize for the best oral history project for SCAMX.

“To be honest, I knew we would do well because we really worked hard during our preparations but I did not expect to win the first prize,” said Chevue January, one of the pupils from Tsau-//Khaeb Secondary School.

Her colleague Will-Maree Brandt was jubilant to be part of the winning team. She said “it is my first time taking part in this competition. I was not expecting to win as the competition was really tough, but I had faith and believed in our work. We won which is unbelievable but I know we deserve it”.

Delta Secondary School from the Khomas region was the runner-up and won an educational trip for a weekend to Swakopmund.

The third place went to Fridrich Awaseb Senior Secondary School from the host region; the prize was a weekend at the Cheetah Conservation Fund near Otjiwarongo.

Over this weekend, the pupils who participated in the competition will be treated to complimentary meals and exciting activities, including a chance to interact with live cheetahs.

Leevi Hakusembe Senior Secondary School from the Kavango West region won the fourth place and a video camera for the school’s history department to document historical events, while Matumbo Ribebe Secondary School won the fifth place in which each participating pupil and teacher won a hamper.

The theme for this year’s competition was ‘Traditional Music and Dance’. The theme was chosen to encourage pupils to pay attention to the meaning behind traditional dances, song lyrics and the materials as well as skills required to make and play traditional musical instruments.

Speaking to YouthPaper, Goodman Gwasira, a lecturer from the University of Namibia’s history department who was one of the judges, said that this year’s theme challenged participants to understand important aspects of the dance they exhibited and have an understanding of the traditional knowledge, skills, message, instruments and objects aligned to the dances.

The United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) was one of the main sponsors for the competition. Roderick April from the Namibia National Commission for Unesco told YouthPaper that the aim of the commission is to ensure that Namibians benefit from Unesco’s programmes and expertise.

April added that SCAMX is one of those programmes. “We have facilitated the process so that these pupils who came from different regions can benefit and so that their research skills can be developed as well as to enhance their dialogue, especially in the area of intangible cultural heritage,” added April.

YouthPaper also spoke to Naitsikile Iizyenda, editor of Unam Press, former SCAMX coordinator and now a judge of the competition. Iizyenda shared that through SCAMX, the Museum Association of Namibia is trying to create a partnership between museums and education.

“SCAMX provides a platform for pupils to become historians in their own regions and as a result, pupils are provided with the opportunity to display their research,” said Iizyenda. She added that pupils should take part in The SCAMX competition or be part of history clubs at their different schools because these type of activities will help them prepare for university with research skills which is a crucial aspect at university level.

“I encourage pupils to take part in SCAMX because it teaches them empathy and tolerance towards other people but most importantly prepares them for tertiary level,” Iizyenda said.

Iizyenda also mentioned that through participation, pupils gain a deeper understanding of historical events and they gain pride for their region because they learn so much about their history, their traditions and their customs. Iizyenda urged teachers to motivate pupils to participate in competitions like SCAMX as there are a lot of benefits that come with the experience.

“Teachers who have been part of this competition before see the benefits of exposing their pupils to such experiences and I urge teachers from various schools to do the same,” said Iizyenda. Iizyenda concluded by stating that there are not enough activities for social science pupils but that competitions such as SCAMX give pupils a different outlook on their field of study and thus they should take advantage of opportunities of this kind.

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