| A Project of the Western Cape Education Department | ||
| HOME | GENERAL INFORMATION | KHANYA SCHOOLS | NEWS | FAQs | LINKS | CONTACT US | ||
| Home > Khanya Schools > District: Eden / Karoo > District Schools > School Info |
| KHANYA SCHOOLS |
|Maths Pilot
Mandlenkosi Secondary
Mandlenkosi Secondary’s motto states the belief that education liberates every learner from any form of slavery. The school serves an indigent population in the Karoo town of Beaufort West and learners come from homes characterised by poverty and unemployment and the majority of the parents are dependent on social grants. It is important that the education the learners receive does indeed liberate them from their particular master – poverty.Prior to Khanya becoming involved at the school, Mandlenkosi Secondary had only one computer – and this was used for administrative purposes only. Today the school proudly boasts with a Khanya laboratory, a Dinaledi (Telkom) laboratory that they received as one of ten Dinaledi (a Mathematics and Physical Science initiative of the National Education Department) Schools in the Western Cape, and a Mindset laboratory. Unfortunately, as a result of normal usage and the advances in technology, some of this has become outdated or has simply aged and is no longer able to be used effectively for curriculum delivery. When one bears in mind that Mandlenkosi Secondary was one of the first Khanya schools in the EMDC, this is hardly surprising. Despite these difficulties, technology continues to play a major role in the educational process at Mandlenkosi Secondary and, thanks to the computers and software provided by Khanya, it has effected a significant improvement in results, particularly in mathematics. Other skills like reading and research have also improved dramatically at the school. Educators who may initially have had their reservations about computers and technology now confidently present lessons in the laboratory, thanks to the training and support of their Khanya facilitators. They have come to realise that technology can simplify their lives and they create their own worksheets and examination scripts and use spreadsheets to record and calculate results, percentages and codes. The only fear now expressed by educators about technology is whether they will be able to stay abreast of the latest developments in such a rapidly changing field. Lessons at Mandlenkosi Secondary have become more interesting as technology brings the world and places that learners have only read about, into the classroom. Learners show a greater deal of interest in lessons that are now interactive. Assessments are done instantly and learners are able to progress at a speed determined by their own ability. The internet has also had a positive impact on the quality of the work learners submit as they now have access to a wealth of resources previously unavailable to them. Khanya’s involvement at Mandlenkosi Secondary has created a real thirst for things technological – educators have even explored the possibility of additional software that will further prepare their learners for the world outside of the school building. The successful application of technology at this school has had a positive impact on the community too: South Cape College used the facility and three of the educators to offer N3 Computer Practice to the community. Having seen the benefit for the community of this, Mandlenkosi Secondary are determined to reintroduce a similar programme once their computers have been updated.
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||
