Stanley is a Chief in his area, and Head of English at a Limpopo school. He's married, has five grown up children, and has been a teacher for over 20 years.

Stanley didn’t originally intend to teach; he wanted to train as a doctor but was unable to because of issues around apartheid. He was the only teacher from his district at the Masterclasses - his school had been hit by a fire bomb in riots and, whilst most of the school was still standing, the staff room had been burnt down and his desk and books were all destroyed.

He arrived at the training exhausted and sceptical about what the sessions would entail. He told the team that he had lost his passion for teaching, that he regularly had classes of over 60 students and was frustrated by salary negotiations and fighting between the unions and the government.

Participants at the class helped Stanley to rediscover his passion for teaching. He said he felt enriched by the workshops and hopes to pass this on to his local curriculum advisor. He found the teaching skills and knowledge particularly helpful and plans to use his new skills to gain the attention of his learners and instil the passion they have lost. He loved learning how to bring Shakespeare’s Macbeth alive and energising his students with a call and response activity.

Stanley returned to help rebuild his school with renewed energy, better equipped to face the many challenges which teaching in Limpopo presents.