(Thamsanqa Chaula, principal
of Tholulwazi Secondary School, Molweni, and some of his learners with the Go Wild Mobile Museum. Pic by Andrew Carter)
Durban joined the worldwide community of museums in
celebrating International Museum Day recently on May 18. The global theme this
year is “Museums for a sustainable society”.
To honour International Museum Day, Durban Natural Science
Museum presented - formally for the first time - its carefully-designed,
custom-made, brand-new mobile museum, Go Wild, taking it to Tholulwazi
Secondary School in lower Molweni.
Cllr S M Mchunu of Ward 9 says: “We are happy that the Go
Wild Mobile Museum is available for learners in the semi-rural areas like
Molweni. It will be good for the learners to see and engage with the exhibits
and learn about the animals. We are keen to know and understand what is in a
museum, but it is sometimes difficult and expensive for the schools to send
learners to the city to the Natural Science Museum, so we are very happy that
the mobile museum can come to us. It is great that the city is investing in the
education of our young people.”
Principal of Tholulwazi Secondary School, Thamsanqa Chaula,
adds: “This is the first of its kind. We in Molweni are privileged and
fortunate to be chosen from so many schools to be visited by the Mobile Museum.
We are encouraging our learners not to live for now and destroy everything, but
to preserve our heritage for future generations. We want our grandchildren to
know what our animals look like. The Go Wild Mobile Museum will help inform and
educate our learners - and will help with teaching theory and inspiring career
choices in the sciences.”
The new mobile museum is both an effective aid to support
formal education and a tool to develop interest, knowledge and understanding of
life and environmental sciences to the widest possible audience. The Go Wild
Mobile Museum makes it possible for museum resources to reach under-served and
outlying areas by visiting schools and communities throughout eThekwini
Municipality offering both curriculum-linked and public education programmes.
Go Wild Mobile Museum will be visiting schools and
communities in different wards throughout eThekwini Municipality, as well as
contributing to various municipal and provincial expos and events. It will
offer curriculum-linked education programmes, for various grades at schools, as
well as a public programme that can be linked to environmental awareness
community events. In undertaking these various programmes, the DNSM’s primary
sites will also be promoted; the City Hall public galleries (Anton Lembede
Street), and the Research Centre (K E Masinga Rd); encouraging schools and
communities to also visit these locations, to expose themselves to world-class
dioramas, as well as to observe the work undertaken behind the scenes at the
DNSM, with their research collections.
For more information contact Busi Gumede on 031 311 2249/56
or email: Busisiwe.Gumede@durban.gov.za
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