Tshwane North College Courses: A Comprehensive Overview
Pretoria, a city known for its academic institutions and research centers, is home to the Tshwane North College. Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends eastward into the foothills of the Magaliesberg mountains. It has a reputation as an academic city and centre of research, being home to the Tshwane University of Technology (TUT), the University of Pretoria (UP), the University of South Africa (UNISA), the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), and the Human Sciences Research Council. Understanding the courses offered by Tshwane North College requires a look at the broader context of Pretoria, its history, culture, and educational landscape. As the administrative capital of the country, Pretoria hosts the headquarters of all national government departments and agencies. Pretoria is the central part of the City of Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality which was formed by the amalgamation of several former local authorities, including Bronkhorstspruit, Centurion, Cullinan, Hammanskraal and Soshanguve.
A Historical and Cultural Backdrop to Education in Pretoria
Pretoria's history has significantly influenced its educational environment. Pretoria was founded in 1855 by Marthinus Pretorius, a leader of the Voortrekkers, who named it after his father Andries Pretorius and chose a spot on the banks of the Apies rivier (Afrikaans for "Monkeys river") to be the new capital of the South African Republic (Dutch: Zuid Afrikaansche Republiek; ZAR). The elder Pretorius had become a national hero of the Voortrekkers after his victory over Dingane and the Zulus in the Battle of Blood River in 1838. The elder Pretorius also negotiated the Sand River Convention (1852), in which the United Kingdom acknowledged the independence of the Transvaal. During the First Boer War, the city was besieged by Republican forces in December 1880 and March 1881. The Second Boer War resulted in the end of the Transvaal Republic and start of British hegemony in South Africa. The Pretoria Forts were built for the defence of the city just prior to the Second Boer War. The Boer Republics of the ZAR and the Orange River Colony were united with the Cape Colony and Natal Colony in 1910 to become the Union of South Africa. Pretoria then became the administrative capital of the whole of South Africa, with Cape Town serving as the legislative capital and Bloemfontein as the judicial capital. Between 1910 and 1994, the city was also the capital of the province of Transvaal.
The city's diverse cultural influences are reflected in its architectural styles and its academic institutions. Some of the notable structures in Pretoria include the late 19th century Palace of Justice, the early 20th century Union Buildings, the post-war Voortrekker Monument, the diverse buildings dotting the main campuses of both the University of Pretoria and the University of South Africa, traditional Cape Dutch style Mahlamba Ndlopfu (the President's House), the Neo-Byzantine Old Synagogue, the more modern Reserve Bank of South Africa (office skyscraper) and the Telkom Lukasrand Tower. Despite the many corporate offices, small businesses, shops, and government departments that are situated in Pretoria's sprawling suburbs, its Central Business District still retains its status as the traditional centre of government and commerce. The area contains a large number of historical buildings, monuments, and museums that include the Pretoria City Hall, National Library of South Africa, Pretorius Square, Church Square (along with its many historical buildings and statues), and the Ou Raadsaal. Several National Departments also have Head Offices in the Central Business district such as the Department of Health, Basic Education, Transport, Higher Education and Training, Sport and Recreation, Justice and Constitutional Development, Public Service and Administration, Water and Environmental Affairs and the National Treasury. This rich heritage provides a foundation for institutions like Tshwane North College.
Geographical and Climatic Influences
Pretoria is situated approximately 56 km (35 mi) north-northeast of Johannesburg in the northeast of South Africa, in a transitional belt between the plateau of the Highveld to the south and the lower-lying Bushveld to the north. Pretoria has a monsoon-influenced humid subtropical climate (Köppen: Cwa) with long hot, rainy summers, and short, dry and mild winters. The city experiences the typical winters of South Africa, with cold, clear nights and mild to moderately warm days. Rain is chiefly concentrated in the summer months, with drought conditions prevailing over the winter months, when frosts may be sharp. During a nationwide heat wave in November 2011, Pretoria experienced temperatures that reached 39 °C (102 °F), unusual for that time of the year. Similar record-breaking extreme heat events also occurred in January 2013, when Pretoria experienced temperatures exceeding 37 °C (99 °F) on several days. The year 2014 was one of the wettest on record for the city. A total of 914 mm (36 in) fell up to the end of December, with 220 mm (9 in) recorded in this month alone. In 2015, Pretoria saw its worst drought since 1982; the month of November 2015 saw new records broken for high temperatures, with 43 °C (109 °F) recorded on 11 November after three weeks of temperatures between 35 °C (95 °F) and 43 °C (109 °F). This unique climate can influence the types of courses offered, particularly in fields like agriculture and environmental studies.
Demographics and Linguistic Diversity
Depending on the extent of the area understood to constitute "Pretoria", the population ranges from 700,000[24] to 2.95 million.[25] The main languages spoken in Pretoria are Sepedi, Setswana, Xitsonga, Tshivenda, Afrikaans, and English. The city of Pretoria has the largest white population in Africa. Even since the end of Apartheid, Pretoria itself has had a white majority, albeit with an ever-increasing black middle-class. However, in the townships of Mamelodi, Soshanguve and Atteridgeville black people make up close to all of the population. The lower estimate for the population of Pretoria includes largely former white-designated areas, and there is therefore a white majority. This linguistic diversity is likely reflected in the student body and potentially in language courses offered at Tshwane North College.
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Pretoria: The Jacaranda City
Pretoria is known as the "Jacaranda City" due to the approximately 60,000-70,000 Jacarandas that line its streets. Pretoria's nickname "the Jacaranda City" comes from the around 70,000 jacaranda trees that grow in Pretoria and decorate the city each October with their purple blossoms. The first two trees were planted in 1888 in the garden of local gardener, J.D. Cilliers, at Myrtle Lodge on Celliers Street in Sunnyside. He obtained the seedlings from a Cape Town nurseryman who had harvested them in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The jacaranda comes from tropical South America and belongs to the family Bignoniaceae. At the end of the 19th century, the flower and tree grower James Clark imported jacaranda seedlings from Australia and began growing them on a large scale. In November 1906, he donated two hundred small saplings to the Pretoria City Council, which planted them on Koch Street (today Bosman Street). The Jacaranda Carnival is an old tradition that was held from 1939 to 1964. After a hiatus of over twenty years, it resumed in 1985. This unique attribute adds to the city's charm and may even inspire courses related to horticulture or environmental studies.
Transportation and Accessibility
Commuter rail services around Pretoria are operated by Metrorail. The routes, originating from the city centre, extend south to Germiston and Johannesburg, west to Atteridgeville, northwest to Ga-Rankuwa, north to Soshanguve and east to Mamelodi. Pretoria Station is a departure point for the Blue Train luxury train. Various bus companies exist in Pretoria, of which PUTCO is one of the oldest and most recognised. The N1 is one of the freeways that runs through Pretoria. It enters from the south as the Ben Schoeman Freeway and at the Brakfontein Interchange in Centurion, the Ben Schoeman Freeway becomes the N14 and N1 continues as the intersecting north-easterly freeway (the Pretoria Eastern Bypass), bisecting the large expanse of the eastern suburbs, routing traffic from Johannesburg in the south to Polokwane and the north of the country.[36] The N1 is a toll road north of Pretoria.[36] The R101 is the original N1, and served the same function of connecting Pretoria with Johannesburg and Polokwane before the construction of the highway. The N4 is also a freeway that runs through Pretoria. It enters the city as a highway from eMalahleni in the east, merging with the N1 at the Proefplaas Interchange just east of the city centre. It begins again north of the city, branching west from the N1 as the Platinum Highway, forming the Pretoria Northern Bypass, and heading to Rustenburg.[36] The N4 runs east-west through this northern part of South Africa, connecting Maputo to Gaborone.[37] The N4 is a toll road. Before the Platinum Highway was built, the N4 continued passed the Proefplaas Interchange to the city centre, where it became a regular road, before again becoming a partially-tolled highway west of the city towards Hartbeespoort. The N14 starts from the R101 just south of the Pretoria CBD, heading south as the Ben Schoeman Freeway. The R21 provides a second north-south highway, further east. It starts from the Fountains Circle south of the city centre, heading south-east to Monument Park, where it becomes a highway. The R80 highway (Mabopane Highway) is a highway in the north-west of the city. Pretoria is also served by many regional roads. The R55 starts at an interchange with the R80, and runs north-south from Pretoria West to Sandton.[36] The R50 starts from the N1 in the south-east of the city, and heads south-east towards Bapsfontein and Delmas.[36] The R511 runs north-south from Sandton towards Brits and barely by-passes Pretoria to the west.[36] The R514 starts from the M1, north of the city centre, and terminates at the R511 in Hartbeespoort.[36] The R513 crosses Pretoria's northern suburbs from east to west. For scheduled air services, Pretoria is served by Johannesburg's airports: OR Tambo International, 45 km (28 mi) south of central Pretoria; and Lanseria International, 35 km (22 mi) south-west of the city. Wonderboom Airport in the suburb of Annlin in the north of Pretoria primarily services light commercial and private aircraft. However, as from August 2015, scheduled flights from Wonderboom Airport to Cape Town International Airport were made available by SA Airlink. The accessibility of Pretoria, with its various transportation options, ensures that students from different regions can access Tshwane North College.
Media and Communication
Jacaranda FM, previously known as Jacaranda 94.2, is a commercial South African radio station, broadcasting in English and Afrikaans, with a footprint that covers Gauteng, Limpopo, Mpumalanga and the North West Province and boasts a listening audience of 3 million people a week, and a digital community of more than 1,6 million people a month. Tuks FM is the radio station of the University of Pretoria and one of South Africa's community broadcasters. It was one of the first community broadcasters in South Africa to be given an FM licence. Radio Pretoria is a community-based radio station in Pretoria, South Africa, whose programmes are aimed at Afrikaners. It broadcasts 24 hours a day in stereo on 104.2 FM in the greater Pretoria area. Pretoria News is a daily newspaper established in Pretoria in 1898. It publishes a daily edition from Monday to Friday and a Weekend edition on Saturday and Sunday. It is an independent newspaper in the English language that serves the city and its direct environs. Beeld is an Afrikaans-language daily newspaper that was launched on 16 September 1974. Beeld is distributed in four provinces of South Africa: Gauteng, Mpumalanga, Limpopo, North West. The presence of various media outlets, including radio stations and newspapers, indicates opportunities for courses in journalism, media studies, and communication at Tshwane North College.
Linguistic Landscape and its Influence on Education
Pretoria Sotho (called Sepitori by its speakers)[39] is the urban lingua franca of Pretoria and the Tshwane metropolitan area in South Africa. It is a combination of Tswana and Northern Sotho (Pedi), with influences from Tsotsitaal and other black South African languages. The linguistic diversity of Pretoria extends beyond the official languages. Pretoria Sotho, or Sepitori, is a unique urban lingua franca that combines Tswana, Northern Sotho, and influences from other languages. This linguistic environment may influence the types of language courses offered at Tshwane North College, potentially including courses that focus on local languages and dialects.
Arts, Culture, and Recreation
Ditsong National Museum of Cultural History, a.k.a. A number of popular South African bands and musicians are originally from Pretoria. The song "Marching to Pretoria" refers to this city. Pretoria was the capital of the South African Republic (a.k.a. Republic of the Transvaal; 1852-1881 and 1884-1902) the principal battleground for the First and Second Boer War, the latter which brought both the Transvaal and the Orange Free State republic under British rule. "Marching to Pretoria" was one of the songs that British soldiers sang as they marched from the Cape Colony, under British Rule since 1814, to the capital of the Southern African Republic (or in Dutch, Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek). The opening line of John Lennon's Beatles song I Am the Walrus, "I am he as you are he as you are me and we are all together", is often believed to be based on the lyric "I'm with you and you're with me and so we are all together"[43] in "Marching to Pretoria".
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Music and Dance
The Hip-hop scene in Pretoria is recognised as one of South Africa's most distinctive, marked by its distinctive use of Spitori- a Lingua franca blending SeTswana, Sepedi, Isizulu, Afrikaans and other languages. Bacardi is a style of music that originated in Pretoria. Early pioneers in the 2000s, including Elvis "DJ Mujava" Maswanganyi, Gift "DJ Dadaman" Mashaba, and Sammy "DJ Pencil" Moripe, helped define the sound with songs like Mugwanti, Ko Morago, and Miami.[45] Characterised by its raw, percussive beats, repetitive rhythms, and deep basslines. Bacardi became a defining soundtrack of township parties and carwash gatherings. The genre is closely tied to the Spitori culture and Pretoria street life. Contemporary artists who make music within the genre include Focalistic, Karabo "Jelly Babie" Khakhu, Mellow & Sleazy, and DJ Maphorisa, many of whom blend Bacardi with Amapiano. Another distinctive feature of the genre are its dance moves, which are fast-paced, have intense footwork that match the beat. Amapiano has strong roots in Pretoria, where its early producers and DJs experimented with Bacardi rhythms and deep house elements. Emerging in the mid-2010s, amapiano is a hybrid of kwaito, deep house, gqom, jazz, soul, and lounge music characterized by synths and wide, percussive basslines. Amapiano is further defined by its log drum, jazzy piano chords, and smooth tempo. Many of the genre's most influential artists and producers trace their roots to Pretoria. Kabza de Small whilst born in Mpumalanga, relocated to Pretoria and is widely regarged as a pioneer and one of the kings of Amapiano. Vigro Deep, from Atteridgeville in Pretoria, is another leading producer whose early works helped shape the sounds.
Art and Museums
Pretoria is home to an extensive portfolio of public art. A diverse and evolving city, Pretoria boasts a vibrant art scene and a variety of works that range from sculptures to murals to pieces by internationally and locally renowned artists. The Pretoria Art Museum is home to a vast collection of local artworks. This vibrant cultural scene could lead to specialized courses in arts, music, and cultural studies at Tshwane North College.
Sports
One of the most popular sports in Pretoria is rugby union. Loftus Versfeld is home to the Blue Bulls, who compete in the domestic Currie Cup, and also to the Bulls in the international … The popularity of sports like rugby in Pretoria may influence the availability of sports-related courses or programs at Tshwane North College.
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