DID U KNOW?

Blackboard

Ayanda Blose

Many students find it hard to Blackboard – a study and student information engine. Blackboard is used to find information, get study guides, notes on lectures, class timetables, tests dates, and extra classes that will be provided. Most students shy away from using the software because they have been scared away by others and end up being negative towards it.

According to my experience drawn from being an MUT student, I realised that not familiarising yourself with certain things and practises of the University, one can easily get left behind.

How do you access Blackboard?

·         You are given a login information and a PIN and in a few simple steps, you have everything you need.

·         Blackboard has many benefits but the most important is that it can be a digital classroom that assists students with valuable information.

The question becomes, which student information search engine do you prefer? Blackboard or Student Portal?  

How to access the student portal

Nganele Dube

MUT makes things easy for registered students to access their academic material like the Academic Record, Proof of Registration Letter and Credits Certificates online using the Student Portal.

Student Portal also has the Student Administration feature that allows access to student graduation attendance, examination attendance, accommodation as well as paper re-marking requests.

There is the Student Enquiry feature which allows access to students summarised Statement of Account, Examination Timetable, Class Timetable and Progress Reports. Using Student Portal you can easily access all these programmes even on your phone at home.

How do you access Student Portal?

1.    You can access student portal on the intranet – http://intranet.mut.ac.za/

2.    You go to ITS enabler

3.    Log in with your student number

4.    There is a default pin for everyone which is 46579, which you can change to your preferred personal pin. 

Qhawe’s nqawe

By: Sfiso Dimba (Health Promoter at Campus Health Services)

Finally, I was at university. I was free to live my life independently just as a man should. No curfews, no nagging parents or no irritating siblings. I was living large; two, three or four chicks at the same time…Who’s counting?

A few weeks into the semester, life was good, my girls were happy and my friends had crowned me the undisputed King-of the-babes. Then I noticed white stains on my underwear, this didn’t worry me much until I took a leak. I experienced the most excruciating pain – worse than giving birth to a child - so I have heard.

A few days later, a white slimy fluid started coming out of my “nqawe” (penis) and my testicles were swollen. I couldn’t walk properly and I was afraid people were going to notice and laugh at me. I had a reputation to uphold but my penis was out of commission. Then things took a turn for the worst, my tongue turned from pink to white and my eyes from white to brown.

This was the final straw, I had to swallow my pride and ask somebody for help! I went to my friend Sizwe and told him about my problem. He asked me if I was using condoms and I told him that my women don’t eat their chocolate bar with a wrapper on it. Chicks dig skin-to-skin. Sizwe advised me to visit the Campus Clinic.

The nurse told me that I had a Sexually Transmitted Infection (STI). She explained that STI’s are infections that one gets from having unprotected sex and that the longer you ignore the infection the worse it gets. It can get so bad that it becomes Penile Cancer and your penis could be amputated. This got me really worried. How could I keep my reputation without my instrument?

I was lucky this time; the nurse gave me an injection and some antibiotics. She said I must finish the course and go back to the clinic after a month for a check-up. She advised me that I should tell my sexual partners to get treated for the STI and that I and my sexual partners should get tested for HIV.

Moral of the story:

If you have ever had an STI, you may have been exposed to HIV. 

If you notice any changes in your genitalia, you must seek medical attention immediately. Having an STI causes the skin to break and can cause an increase in the HIV viral load in the semen which increases the risk of getting infected with HIV, or passing HIV to your partner. STIs can also lead to other complications if not treated on time.

Some of the most common sexually transmitted infections include Chlamydia, Gonorrhoea, Syphilis, Genital Herpes and HPV, which virus that can cause genital warts or cervical cancer...

·         Even when there are no sores, STIs can cause biological changes, such as swollen tissue, making it easier to transmit and acquire HIV through sexual contact.

·         It is important to test regularly because STIs often have no symptoms

·         Anyone can get an STI!

·         If you have an STI, you can transmit it to your sexual partner.

·         If your partner has an STI, they can transmit it to you.

·         HIV is also an STI.

STIs can be prevented by using a condom every time you have sex.