PickleballSOUTH AFRICA
MINI COOPERS MAKE THE GRADE
After two years of hitting pickleballs to each other as they ran in the grass , bouncing them on the court , thwacking them against the practice wall , or just tossing balls back and forth by hand , the Memel Primary School third graders are poised to really learn the game .
Under the tutelage of coach Evidence Mafuriranwa , the first and second graders were introduced to balls and paddles . We purposely avoided structure and just concentrated on fun and building hand / eye coordination . Now the third grade “ Mini Coopers ” are learning the rules and the etiquette of the game : from service at the baseline to keeping their toes out of the kitchen . Their teacher , to promote pickleball , has agreed to release eight students ( a manageable
Kids with coaches at practice wall . number ) each day for an hour at noon . Memel . Global is sponsoring two regular members of our daily 7 a . m . games , Themba Enock and Tshepo Khanye , as supplementary coaches for that hour . They have high hopes for the kids .
Memel Primary is small by South African standards : 380 kids , but classes of more than 30 students in size . It is nearly impossible for the teachers to move between the desks , but they manage to do some extraordinary teaching . The SA Department of Education recently assessed dozens of schools in our district and graded them in three levels . Schools were evaluated on administration , financial management , academic achievement and extracurricular activities . Only two schools were awarded the top-level assessment , one of which was Memel Primary
By Steven Ablondi & Cindy Burns
MEMEL . GLOBAL
( the school Memel . Global and SheWinS have been supporting since 2009 ).
It is worth saying that Memel Primary School is public , but until the end of apartheid in 1994 had been reserved only for white children . On the eve of democratic rule and anticipating the election of Nelson Mandela , white parents withdrew their kids and started a separate , private , “ Afrikaans ” school . Memel Primary is now exclusively black , other than some teachers and administrative staff who heroically stayed on . It is the poorest and most under-supported school in the province due to its geographical isolation and sheer distance from the provincial capital .
With only grit and determination to rely on , and against all financial odds , the school insists on giving students the best possible chances . Pickleball was adopted as a sport for both boys and girls in 2020 — the only school to do so in South Africa . The school library ( built by Memel . Global in 2018 ) now has more than 10,000 books . It was cited in the Department of Education ’ s report as a “ significant beneficial factor in the children ’ s learning .”
Between getting coached in sports and reading books , these kids are faring better than students in most schools in rural South Africa . They have stronger-than-expected English language speaking , reading and writing capability . Unlike other district schools , Memel kids are taught and tested in English rather than their mother tongues , as of grade three .
This “ little school with a big heart ” wants to someday be the “ Jamaican bobsled team ” of pickleball .
Go Mini Coopers ! •
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