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By now, you must have heard about, seen, retweeted, posted on Facebook or been made aware of the speech delivered by the Deputy Headmaster of Jeppe High School for Boys, Kevin Leatham. 

The day after Dialogue Day, the principal of Rustenburg Girls' High School, Michael Gates, found an email waiting in his Inbox. Sent by one of the learners in his school, her letter shows the value of having these conversations, that opening up the possibility to talk matters to learners.

Last week Wednesday, Rustenburg Girls' High School in Cape Town, stopped normal classes to take part in their first Dialogue Day. The theme of this year's Dialogue Day was Exclusion and Belonging. 

For many schools, the continued support and engagement of former learners contributes to the on-going success of the institution. This support is given because alumni feel a pride and love for their former school and a deep sense of gratitude for how the school has shaped them.

We have read, heard and watched many commentators bemoan the dearth of leadership today. They say, while managers are in plentiful supply, we have very few true leaders who can lead organizations, communities, and even countries into the unknown and unpredictable future that stretches ahead of us.

Shirley, as a leader of a school, speaks about the importance of pausing and reflecting on the values that her school has built a legacy of 133 years upon. She warns that we should not simply dive into policy changes and codes of conduct without first reviewing whether our school’s values are still relevant today. 

Earlier this week Professor Mamokgethi Phakeng was chosen as Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cape Town. "My goal," she said in her first statement as Vice-Chancellor, "is to transform the university while building on its excellence." Her appointment was undoubtedly important for the University and the transformation journey it has been on.

In the United States, black learners are seldom taught by black teachers. But when they are, according to research over the last few years, black students perform better and are more likely to finish high school and consider tertiary education. Black teachers also have higher expectations of black learners than their white counterparts do.

What Leah speaks about sounds like such hard work for teachers! Hard work that seems to have no end. A teacher will have to continue re-visiting their assumptions, challenge their own perceptions of the world and continue to find ways of making what is unconscious, conscious. Damn hard work!

Certainty brings assurance. Uncertainty is disconcerting, but it brings with it the possibility of change. This is the paradox of human existence.