Southend Schools in cultural promotion drive

Southend Primary School’s 2016 Awards/Cultural Gala Night held at its campus off the Chikwawa Road in Blantyre proved to parents, guardians and society one thing; promotion of cultural values, talents and education complement each other.

Learners, from reception to primary level, took their guardians and the school’s management by surprise when they displayed artistic activities.

Celebrated under the theme Choral Songs, Southend Primary School’s 13 Awards/Cultural Gala provided a platform which exposed the learners’ rare singing talents.

Most parents could hardly believe the sight of their children, some as young as three years old, delivering songs in such a professional manner.

The highlight of the night were the reception pupils who performed Do-Re-Mi-So, a tune from the Rodger and Hammerstein’s The Sound of Music—which saw them singing the notes of the major musical scale.

This was the first time for the kids to perform the song, but their presentation was incredible which took the audience by surprise. Some parents could be seen cheering up and taking pictures of their children during their classic performance!

The Standard Two learners also had a dazzling moment when they performed The Lion Sleeps Tonight, a song originally written and recorded by Solomon Linde with the Evening Birds in 1939 for the South African Gallo Record Company under the title Mbube.

The popular Zulu song is also used as a sound track in American actor Eddie Murphy’s popular Coming To America movie.

The Standard Three learners were also a toast of the cultural night when they impressively delivered on a popular song called Malaika.

Malaika, meaning angel in Swahili, is a Swahili love song written by a Tanzanian Adam Salim in 1945, and up to date this word has always been associated with a beautiful girl among Swahili speakers.

As if that was not enough, Standard Five learners performed Asimbonanga—a 1987 Johnny Clegg song which was dedicated to the first heroic South African President Nelson Mandela, who by then was imprisoned on Robben Island.

The song, which means “we have not seen him”, was an anti-Apartheid anthem which became popular and was later banned in South Africa.

The children’s rare performances did not only amuse parents and guardians, but also the guest of honour, lawyer Krishna Savjani who also happens to the chairperson of Southend Schools.

The management of Southend Primary School believes that the institution is a focal point where children learn different things, including nurturing their careers and cultural values through the Award/Cultural Gala Night, which is an annual event.

“Some children have in-born talents and others need inspiration to pursue their careers, realise their potential and nurture their values. This is the reason we integrated the Award/Cultural Gala Night to honour outstanding and talented learners,” said Logan Rangasami, the head teacher from Southend Primary School.

He said the school has been running the annual event for 13 consecutive years in an effort to instil academic and cultural values among learners.

Rangasami underscored the importance of incorporating cultural programmes in academics, saying students need excellence not only in the field of academics but also culture and arts.

“We say yes to students who are bookworms, but at the same time we offer them an opportunity to nurture their talents such as music.

“We believe that we have a responsibility to create a platform for our learners to have wide options of careers in future.

The learners of Southend Primary School did not only impress on their performances but also costume