Monday, September 28, 2009

How our Circumstances Affect Us

by Bushteens

A number of individuals seem doomed to be subsumed by their circumstances. For the most part, one can almost always predict with accuracy that young people living in impoverished areas will amount to very little if anything at all. To what extent do our circumstances affect how we turn out? The answer is, well it depends. It depends ultimately on your will and determination. Yes, it would be a little easier if you had the support of your family and community but often times you need to go at it alone. A number of people, however, get bogged down by their circumstances and let them control their path in life. The ones who truly succeed are those who do not see obstacles but search for opportunities and solutions.

Reconstructive Surgery

by Bushkids

We have all heard of cosmetic surgery – ranging from breast augmentation to liposuction. However, not many people have heard of cleft palate repair surgeries. A number of children are born with cleft palates defect that at the worst of times makes it difficult for them to feed. Surgery is thus undertaken to repair the palate. Can this be considered cosmetic surgery? Where do we draw the line? Is plastic – as opposed to reconstructive – surgery morally acceptable? Should we be modifying our bodies in pursuit of (unattainable) perfection?

Our Experience at Bush Radio thus Far

by Bushtots

It is nearly the end of the year and as it approaches, we took a little time to reflect on the ‘Bush experience’ thus far. Besides all the technical aspects to radio broadcasting, we have made many new friends. Along with friendship comes the great memories – the dead air when the engineer didn’t put the mics back on or the birthday parties we’ve had as we grow older emotionally, mentally and physically. All in all our time at Bush has been incredible to say the least and it looks set to get even better.

Monday, September 21, 2009

Eating Disorders

by Bushteens

The show focused on eating disorders, namely Anorexia, Bulimia. However, the show touched on the related issues of obesity and covered good and bad eating habits. These conditions can be brought on by a range of problems – psychological, occupational and so on. Young people nowadays are bombarded with unrealistic and unattainable images of beauty and health. They are pushed to look a certain way in order not only to be considered attractive but by and large these images are also ‘alleged’ to be what healthy people look like.

The disorders mentioned above warrant a lot of concern as they are spreading fast, even amongst men. The show ended with the conclusion that rather than focusing on losing weight, focus on being healthy.

Careers II

by Bushkids

The discussion on careers continued this week, with featured occupations being Electrical Engineering, Law, Surgery and Interior Design. Whatever your chosen career path, the important thing is that you are passionate about it. Passion makes it easier to enjoy what you are doing and not mind putting in the extra effort. However, realistically speaking our parents are going to require us to forgo our passion and get jobs that pay. How do we make them understand? How do we find that balance between passion and paying our own way later on in life?

Saving our Planet

by Bushtots

There are a number of ways to save our planet. Among these are the more conventional methods such as: switching off and unplugging electrical appliances that are not in use; showering instead of bathing as well as turning the lights off when you leave a room and of course, recycling.

But did you know that using a roll-on deodorant instead of an aerosol one is better for the earth? It is the smallest and simplest changes that will make the biggest difference to our world.

Monday, September 14, 2009

Exam Prep

It is that time of the year again – crunch time. Matriculants are busy with mock exams, also getting into a tizz about the final exams. Grade 9’s are also getting themselves in a frenzy about their exams. We offered a few tips to get you a bit more relaxed about writing exams, the first of which is get enough rest. Your body functions best when it is not tired, and your brain will retain more information. Furthermore, if you walk into an exam feeling tired then your brain will be in sleep mode, meaning that late night cramming session will definitely not pay off. Secondly, do not do marathon study sessions – take a 15 minute break every 45 minutes. Use this break to stretch your legs, refill your glass of water or juice and have a snack. Also remember to get some air.

Don’t forget to tune into Bush Radio every Tuesday and Thursday for matric revision sessions. The shows are between 16h00 and 17h00 and cover the exam structure, thereby providing useful hints on how to study and what’s required of you for each question.

by Bushteens

Careers I

At this stage of our lives, we are getting ready to make that transition to high school. This means, choosing which subjects we are going to take. Indirectly, our subject choices now will either limit or broaden our horizons vis-à-vis the jobs we can do.

However, school is important even if you want to be your own boss. This is not to say that those who are not educated can go on to become successful. Yes, some of them do, but look at it this way, the same people you go to school with are the very same people you will offer your services or products to. Look at school as another networking opportunity – it’s never too early to start.

by Bushkids

Our Communities II - Our Schools

School is the one place, apart from home, where we spend the bulk of our time. School time affords us the opportunity to interact with our peers on a social (and ‘professional’) level. In as much as our schools are supposed to be safe havens of learning, undoubtedly the areas in which some of them are located increases the danger we are exposed to.

In some of our schools we would like to have more patrols to stamp out the crime. For example, criminals enter our schools and steal equipment such as computers. In other schools, we need patrols to stamp out the sale of illegal substances, namely drugs, to our peers. Patrols will also curb violence in schools, be it pupil-pupil, pupil-teacher, teacher-pupil, etc.

by Bushtots

Monday, September 7, 2009

Ayabonga selected for the National Debating Team


Grade 11 pupil Ayabonga Kalipa – part of the Bushteens – has been selected for the national debating team. Ayabonga has been an active member of the Township Debating League since 2007 and in the same year he was a provincial finalist. He has been selected to be part of the International Schools Quiz and even won the provincial essay writing on agriculture. This year after having won the Township Debating League title and reaching the semi-finals of the provincial team, he was awarded the opportunity to try out for the national team. Ayabonga took this opportunity and made the most of it. We are proud to have him on our team.