/ 29 October 2010

Doing the maths

Runner-up — Education Award: Investec ProMaths Programme

The findings of a recent study into the performance of the South African schooling system conducted by the Centre for Development and Enterprise show that half the university entrance level passes in mathematics are produced by only 6.6% of schools and half of science passes by only 5.5% of schools.

The authors say that, if additional resources were devoted to schools just below this top layer of schools, the national performance in mathematics and science could be improved significantly.

Moreover, the report states that about 90% of the country’s schools are still failing to meet minimum performance standards in these subjects, which undermines the potential of millions of young South Africans and hampering national development.

Investec bank’s flagship corporate social investment (CSI) project, the ProMaths programme, supports the secondary schooling system with a view to achieving competency in English, maths and science. More than R3.7-million was spent on the programme in the last financial year.

The pilot project is a partnership between Investec and the Kutlwanong Centre for Maths, Science and Technology in Dobsonville, Soweto. It contracts experienced educators to give extra maths and science lessons to learners in grades 10, 11 and 12 at weekends and during school holidays.

In 2009 the project matriculated 191 pupils from Soweto alone, producing 68 As, 65 Bs and a full complement of maths passes. Setlogane Manchidi, Investec’s CSI head, says the pupils show extreme dedication.

Because of the success rate at Kutlwanong, the project has been extended to KwaZulu-Natal, North West, Limpopo, Mpumalanga and the Free State. These regions added to the 501 national maths passes for 2009.

Manchidi says the debate about maths standards has unfairly tarred his pupils with the same brush. “Our students are ready for the toughest papers available. Artificially inflating the marks due to the system’s inadequacy is not fair to our students, who have worked over weekends and holidays to ensure they are ready. “We see their performance at university level as the real proof of what we have achieved together,” he says.

Investec is not the only company concerned about the flailing levels of numeracy. ProMaths is gaining new corporate donors and is considered to have solid long-term sustainability.

The programme does not intend to replace the role of maths educators at schools, but rather to supplement their efforts. It aims to improve maths performance levels by 50% to assist learners to gain entrance to universities.

It is also keen to increase the number of successful learners in the science and accounting-related fields to boost the pool of potential employees from which companies like Investec can draw.

The Investing in the Future judges said the ProMaths programme was a best-practice model and encouraged its further rollout around the country.