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Matric learners hone maths skills at Kovsies

19 July 2019 | Story Valentino Ndaba | Photo Charl Devenish

MEC for Education, Dr Tate Makgoe, presents an award to Khesa Maphakiso from Beacon High School at the ceremony.

Projections indicate that by 2020 about 80% of all jobs will require some level of competency in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). Also, given the rising unemployment rate and the subsequent demand for entrepreneurial skills in the past few years, STEM education has become a priority for South Africa.

A step in the right direction

Equipping young people to be efficient in the world of work and business is a major driver behind the country’s education system. The MEC for Education in the Free State reiterated the importance of STEM subjects. Dr Tate Makgoe addressed about 200 top-performing Grade 12 learners from quintile 1-3 schools in the province who were attending the South African Institute for Chartered Accountants (SAICA) maths camp.

Making mathematics fashionable

The week-long camp recently closed with an awards ceremony which was held on the Bloemfontein Campus of the University of the Free State (UFS). Nine of the creams of the crop of matric learners were honoured for their achievements in mathematics, physical science, and accounting.

Zinhle Gumbi, from Morena Mokopela Secondary School, one of the three Mathematics Top Achiever award recipients has become more determined to choose a maths-related profession. “I have told myself that any career I follow must include maths. Dr Tate Makgoe said we must prove to people that the black child can do it.”

Emerging as one of the Accounting Top Achievers was Albert Ramatsekane from Tsoseletso Secondary School who intends to pursue a Chartered Accountant (CA) qualification. “The camp has boosted my confidence. Now I can choose the CA stream without thinking twice.”

Sowing the seed and reaping the fruits

Accounting lecturer Mojalefa Mosala was satisfied with the results of the camp. “I am happy to see many familiar faces in my classes who have attended previous camps. It means we’re doing something right.”

Mosala, a former assistant camp organiser, has confidence in the project as it “affords a rare opportunity to learners who have not been exposed to information, the higher learning environment, study skills and motivational figures to experience all of these”.
Kovsies prides itself in partnering with industry stakeholders to build the future of the country, one maths camp at a time.

News Archive

Students attend prestigious National Astrophysics and Space Science Programme

2014-08-22

From the left are: Thokozane Ngcongwane with Mbali Xaba and Thabo Kumalo (both third-year Physics and Chemistry students).

Three students from our Qwaqwa Campus – Thokozane Ngcongwane, Mbali Xaba and Thabo Kumalo – were recently selected to attend the prestigious National Astrophysics and Space Science Programme (NASSP). The programme – in partnership with the National Research Foundation (NRF) – ran for two weeks at the South African Astronomical Observatory (SAAO) in Cape Town.

The project targets students from formerly disadvantaged institutions of higher learning, where astronomy and astrophysics are not offered.

Students are invited to apply for the programme, with emphasis placed on students majoring in mathematics and physics. Students from other fields are also invited to apply, though. The programme allows for the development of black astronomers and astrophysicists, which are in demand in the ever-growing environment of astronomy in South Africa.

“Topics such as gravitational lenses, black holes, stellar evolution and the mysteries of cosmology were presented and students were invited to engage with the speakers during and after the presentations,” said Ngcongwane, a third-year Zoology and Entomology student.

The programme challenged them to work on basic astrophysical concepts in groups while individual written assignments were part of the learning process as well.

“Given the lack of information about the complexities of astronomy the students had, this was the most ideal time to learn about all matters astronomy and astrophysics as lectures offered a lot to young and excited minds,” Ngcongwane said.

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