Woolworths Educational Programmes and MySchool have launched the 2015 Teacher’s Day competition by inviting all South African learners to recognise the teachers who have made a difference in their lives.  This annual event promotes UNESCO’s World Teacher’s Day on the 5th of October and involves South African children and school communities in the global movement to highlight the vital status and role of teachers in society.

Every learner in South Africa can enter the competition with its ‘Celebrate our real heroes this Teacher’s Day’ theme, by writing a short motivation about the teacher who has touched their lives, which can be submitted by email, fax or post by 10 September.  In the first stage of the competition, two compelling entries from each province, in both the primary and high school categories, will be selected by a panel of independent judges.  From this shortlist, the judges will then select 4 regional high school and 4 regional primary school finalists. In stage two of the competition, the eight teachers in the running for the Grand Prize will be hosted in Cape Town at an event in October to meet and greet the judges.  At the end, an external auditor will select the 1st, 2nd and 3rd place winners.

Woolworths and MySchool have long supported the upliftment of education in South Africa through a variety of initiatives.  The Teachers Day competition is one that recognises that acknowledgement, respect and appreciation play an important part in motivating and inspiring teachers as they strive to make a difference in young lives.  The high stakes prizes are designed to express real gratitude for the teachers who have had an outstanding impact on their learners.  All eight finalist teachers will win a laptop each, with the 1st, 2nd and 3rd place winners taking home Woolworths Giftcards to the value of R50 000, R20 000 and R10 000 respectively, while the remaining five finalists are each awarded a R1 000 Woolworths Giftcard.  There are prizes too, for the eight learners and their schools, with schools each being awarded R5 000 cash and each child able to enjoy a shopping spree at Woolworths to the value of R5 000.

While Woolworths Educational Programmes and MySchool have run the Teacher’s Day competition for over five years, it was in 2014 that they opened it up to every school in the country.  They received a record 7555 entries that were testimony to the fact that there are many, many South African teachers who are doing fantastic work at inspiring and developing our youth.  This year, the competition is relevantly linked to the WW & Pharrell Williams ‘Are you this us?’ campaign which aims to raise R100 million for education in SA – the famous singer’s mum is a teacher.

ENDS

 

Editor’s notes:

For more information on the Woolworths Education programmes:

http://www.woolworths.co.za/store/fragments/corporate/corporate-index.jsp?content=corporate-landing&contentId=fol110087

 

ISSUED ON BEHALF OF WOOLWORTHS

CONTACT:     DIANE PETERSON

CELL:              083 395 3566

EMAIL:            dianepeterson@woolworths.co.za