Northern Cape Premier Dr Zamani Saul launched the provincial government’s e-Learning Initiative at Vuyolwethu High School in Kimberley, where he handed over tablets to Grade 12 pupils.
NORTHERN Cape Premier Dr Zamani Saul, during the launch of the provincial government’s e-Learning Initiative at Vuyolwethu High School in Kimberley, urged Grade 12 pupils to aim for an 80% pass rate during the 2023 matric examinations.
Saul was addressing the matric pupils during the handover of tablets that will assist them with their studies during their final year of schooling.
The initiative is spearheaded by the provincial Department of Education, which aims to make learning through technology not only accessible to pupils at school, but also in the comfort of their homes.
The tablet does not require any data to operate and comes equipped with six pre-loaded school subjects – Mathematics, Geography, Physical Science, Life Science, Business Studies and Accounting.
Saul advised the pupils to make good use of the technology that has been placed in their hands to ensure that they have a brighter future.
“Through this initiative, we are able to introduce modern ways of teaching and teacher support. We also want to provide quality public education. All these initiatives also form part of modernising our Province. You (Grade 12 pupils) must make effective use of the tablets and improve the Grade 12 outcome. For the Class of 2023 we want nothing less than an 80% pass rate. Half of that outcome should be Bachelor’s passes,” Saul told the pupils.
He cautioned the pupils, however, that all the resources given to them will be in vain should they fail to stay committed to their studies.
“You need to be disciplined and prioritise your school work throughout this year. We can bring you all the resources and all sorts of support, but all our efforts will be meaningless if you do not exercise discipline.
“The biggest equaliser in society is education. It does not matter what your background is, you will be able to compete with anyone on an intellectual level if you are educated. Make good use of the resources in your hands to not only have fun while studying, but to improve your knowledge and level of understanding,” Saul said.
The pupils were very excited to receive the tables.
One Grade 12 pupil at the school, Jabulile Mafilika, said the tablet will enable her to save on having to go to printing shops for learning material.
“I am excited and happy to have the opportunity to be a recipient of this tablet. It is going to assist a lot with my preparation for tests and the examinations. It will also enable me to do research at home and not at the internet shops like I used to in the past. I also will not need to print material at the internet shops, which was a hefty sacrifice to make. There are past examination question papers loaded on the tablet that will help me see how the questions are posed during the examinations.
“Even better, is that this device requires no data. So we will not hassle our parents for money for data,” Mafilika said with a chuckle.
