Towards the mountain: characteristics and implications of the South African UPTTRAIL pilot project

Abstract

In this article Professor van der Vyver, Chairman of the Exkcutive Committee of the UPITRAIL * Trust, states in the first place the goal of the UPITRAIL pilot project, which is to demonstrate convincingly that it can effectively contribute towards addressing the needs outlined by Professor Thembela in the previous article. In the second place he describes the endeavours that preceded and contributed to the inception of the pilot project and of the educational Trust which administers it. In the third place he describes the pilot project, in which a representative sample of K waZulu teachers were taught English, teaching and thinking skills by means of SALT. In the second part of the article Mrs Beatriz Capdevielle of Project Intelligence, Venezuela, draws attention to the social, economic and political implications of the pilot project. Throughout history only a few people have benefited from the growing corpus of scientific knowledge which permits the development of human intelligence and potential. The UPITRAIL pilot project endeavours to place the benefits of knowledge in the hands of all people, to achieve total and responsible participation by all members of society, especially the blacks, in the social, economic and political life of South Africa. In hierdie artikel sit professor Van der Vyver, Voorsitter van die Uitvoerende Komitee van die UPITRAIL Trust, in die eerste plek die doe! uiteen van die UPITRAIL-loodsprojek wat oortuigend moet demonstreer dat dit kan bydra om in die behoeftes soos deur professor Thembela in die vorige artikel uiteengesit, te voorsien. Tweedens beskryfhydie aanvanklike pogings wat bygedra het tot die ontstaan van die loodsprojek en van die opvoedkundige Trustwat dit administreer. Derdens beskryfhy die loodsprojekwaar 'n verteenwoordigende groep KwaZulu-onderwysers se Engels-, onderrig- en denkvaardighede verbeter is d.m.v. SALT-metodes. In die tweede gedeelte van die artikel vestig mev. Beatriz Capdevielle van die Project Intelligence, Venezuela, die aandag op die sosiale, ekonomiese en politieke implikasies van die loodsprojek. Deur die geskiedenis het net 'n klein groepie mense gebaat by die groeiende korpus wetenskaplike kennis wat die ontwikkeling van menslike intelligensie en potensiaal toelaat. Die UPITRAIL-loodsprojek poog om die voordele van kennis vir alle mense beskikbaar te stet om sodoende totale en verantwoordelike deelname van alle lede van die gemeenskap, vera! van die swartes, moontlik te maak in die sosiale, ekonomiese en politieke !ewe van Suid-Afrika.