Mr Samuel Mampa, Junior Lecturer in the Department of Science and Technology Education, specializing in Information Communications Technologies in Education.

Who is Mr. Mampa?

Mr. Samuel Mampa was born and raised in the city of Polokwane in the Limpopo province. This young academic completed his schooling in the same province and then furthered his studies at Brooklyn City College. He initially completed a course in IT Technical Support, and later decided to pursue a Bachelor of Education (B.Ed.) at the University of Pretoria (UP) from 2016 to 2019. In 2019 he registered for his B.Ed. Honours in Computer-integrated Education at the same institute while working with the university as a teaching assistant.

In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic struck and people were expected to work from home. This is when Samuel was faced with an opportunity to teach at a school while he was still working as a teaching assistant.He taught Mathematics and Mathematical Literacy at a school in Atteridgeville, Pretoria. In 2021 was afforded yet another opportunity, to apply for the position of Junior lecturer at UNISA. Samuel is currently in the position of Junior Lecturer and Information and Communication Technologies in Education (ICTE) Unit Representative at UNISA, in the Department of Science and Technology Education and he is pursuing his Master’s degree with the University of Pretoria.

How did you manage being a student, teaching assistant and school teacher all at the same time?

‘’Basically it is all about time management,’’ he mentioned. He also continued to say that it is also about preventing a pile up of work and having to do everything all at once when it is due. Before joining academia full-time, what he did was, from 8 am to 2pm he would be at school teaching and when he got home he would manage his teaching assistant duties. It was also helpful that teaching assistants did not teach so all he had to do was offer student support on the learning management system (ClickUP). Samuel would attend to all their queries and needs in an allocated two (2-3) hours slot. He then used the remaining time to work on his honors project and modules. This determination and work ethic is what drove him to the point where he is at now in his professional career.

What keeps you motivated?

‘’Oh, loving what you’re doing. If you don’t enjoy and love what you're doing then you will definitely fall behind,’’ he said. He also mentioned respecting others because you are not working alone but with other people, so it is important to respect your colleagues. If you respect someone you will make sure that you submit to their requests so that the job can get done on time.

What are the challenges you come across in your role as a Unit Representative?

He mentions that one of the challenges he encounters is that sometimes colleagues are not prompt to respond to emails or to submit what is required of them on time. This then creates stagnation in productivity because a lot of tasks are dependent on each other. He has then resorted to having unit meetings so that everyone is on the same page, and they overcome the challenge of people not being prompt or meeting the requirements.

What are your future plans as an academic?

‘’My future plans as an academic include publishing more articles and becoming recognized globally. Because I love technologies, in terms of gadgets. I also want to explore new technologies which are being developed and how they work.’’ In the digital era we are living in, it is beneficial to educate yourself in the technologies of the world, because in every decade technology advances.

#Written by Mahlako Chuene