Bloemfontein - The Free State Education Department has launched an enrichment programme for grade 8 and 9 learners to help them with problematic learning areas in Mathematics, Science, Technology and Accounting (MSTA) for the duration of the World Cup.
The MSTA programme is aimed at learners who have never taken part in such skills development initiatives and to encourage them to further study the subjects in higher institutions.
Department spokesperson, Howard Ndaba, said 168 learners were chosen from ten rural towns in three districts; Xhariep, Fezile Dabi and Thabo Mofutsanyane to attend the programme. He said the learners, from 27 different schools, were nominated by their schools.
"We are trying to give them good basics of these subjects because they tend to experience difficulties in later grades. The idea is to start them with good basics for a better comprehension of these subjects at lower grades so that they can do better in later grades," he said.
Ndaba said classes will run for the next seven Saturdays for six hours in various centres in different towns of the district municipalities such as Sasolburg and Fouriesburg.
The programme is a partnership between the department and the University of the Free State. Ndaba said the implementation and management of the programme will be done by the university.
The programme forms part of other programmes that have been initiated by the department in an effort to use the energy around World Cup festivities to support teaching and learning areas in schools.
These programmes include Winter School Programmes for Mathematics, Physical Science and Accounting and a Life Skills and HIV and AID education programme at selected town and schools for grade 3, 6 and 9 learners. The Mobile Library Programme has also been rolled out at Rural Schools to encourage leisure reading and also a Career Guidance class for grade 9 learners in various towns and schools.
