Sasol Energy in partnership with the South African Medical & Education (SAME) Foundation, has renovated and equipped a mathematics laboratory in Manyano High School. A school located in Khayelitsha in Western Cape.
The math lab is part of a grand plan by the South African government and education stakeholders’ Vision 2030 education goals. It is part of a bigger National Development Plan.
The Manyano High School provides a learning center to about 1,300 students from a community with one of the highest unemployment rates in South Africa. The unemployment rate of the community from which Manyano High students come from is estimated to be at about 73%.
The school itself lacks proper learning infrastructure and funds to drive its normal operations. Hence, the donation of a math lab by Sasol Energy is highly welcomed. However, despite its shortcomings in the learning infrastructure and funding department, Manyano High produces one of the top leading students in national exams in South Africa.
The school had a 90% pass rate in the 2016 grade 12 NCS exams. Hopefully, the new lab will make the school maintain or improve its performance.
“Sasol is mindful of our responsibility to the communities where we operated,” said Christopher Kabosha, a Senior Manager of Marketing and Corporate Affairs at Sasol Energy.
“We are investing in better educational outcomes at Manyano High School in line with this commitment. Quality school education with global competitive literacy and numeracy standards is key to helping improve prosperity in disadvantaged communities.”
The CEO of the SAME Foundation, Trevor Pols, added, “We are partnering with organizations like Sasol to address this crisis to ensure that, in the coming years, our schools will produce children who have been educated to a level that allows them to reach their full potential.”
The math lab also included support and training for teachers on the use of digital boards, which allow them to utilize computer technology in their lessons.