The new report on EwB and IkamvaYouth’s joint “Yes We Can!” maths project is now available. The program is the result of a joint effort by EwB and IkamvaYouth to improve math scores amongst Khayelitsha students.
Teachers had identified low pass rates amongst their graduates. The primary reason for the poor math results was that many students lack the basic skills in mathematics in order to be able to “bootstrap” their way up to more advanced levels. As explained by the author of the report, Phillip Luyanda Mcelu, IkamvaYouth’s “Yes We Can!”project coordinator, “maths is like a ladder, you can’t jump one step and expect not to fall. Without understanding grade 8-level maths it makes it difficult to fully grasp grade 9 maths and the chain continues to grade 12.”
The feedback from the students has been positive; however, one of the major challenges over the course of this ongoing program is to ensure high student participation and attendance. Mr. Mcelu has worked on resolving this problem through frequent communication with parents, and also encouraging students to do homework at home by taking their books and materials home with them. Doing so has helped demonstrate to parents the importance and benefits of the math program.
It is hoped that over the years Khayelitsha will be able to graduate more students with the math skills to be able to help them find employment after they finish their studies, thus ensuring livelihoods.
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