No winter break for matrics

WHEN pupils down pens and prepare to start their three-week long school holiday tomorrow, matrics will be using the down- time to get themselves ready for their final exams later this year.

Nelson Mandela Bay schools start their annual winter holiday school programme on Monday, while maths and accounting students at Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU) will help matrics better their chances of university entry with extra tuition in these key subjects.

Motherwell High School, in NU7, will serve as a study centre for Cingani High School and Soqhayisa High School pupils.

With winter classes scheduled by the provincial Department of Education for a week only, science and technology head of department at Cingani High, Mxolisi Lugawe, said even though classes were meant to run for a week, the school would, however, continue classes for another week.

"The winter classes are quite essential to the pupils as they do revision in order to prepare them for the school exams. With the department covering us with experienced teachers and material, pupils are sure to be equipped with all compulsory information," he said.

Motherwell High School principal Mzikayise Sonkwala said the classes would instruct pupils ahead of the school curriculum and give them a better chance at improving their marks at the end of the year.

Meanwhile, NMMU will do its part by helping Grade 12 pupils better their chances of securing a place at university by improving their mathematics and accounting marks through their annual Accounting Winter School programme.

Now called the "AccMaths" school, the accounting component will run from July 7 to 12, with the maths classes following from July 14 to 18.

A three-day accounting school for Grade 11 pupils will also take place in the mid-year break – running from July 1 to 3.

NMMU first-year Chartered Accounting student, Andisile Mdatyulwa, who is a product of the programme, said last year's winter school helped him understand accounting and was also the catalyst for him pursuing a career in the field.

"Before the school, I wasn't anticipating a career in accounting, but the experience made me consider this field ...I was particularly motivated by hearing the vice-chancellor's scholars (the university's top students) talking about their experiences in studying accounting," he said.

The accounting and mathematics curricula, sponsored by major auditing firm Deloitte, typically attracts more than 500 pupils across the Eastern and Southern Cape. NMMU accounting lecturer Ansulene Prinsloo said the main aim of the AccMaths school was to help matric pupils get higher Admission Points Scores (APS), which is their entry ticket to higher education.

"We have added the week of mathematics for the Grade 12s this year as we realised from experience that most pupils also struggle with this subject," Prinsloo said.

Provincial education spokesperson Loyiso Pulumani said the winter class programme not only allowed pupils to do revision but also gave them a chance to focus on areas that were more of a challenge to them.

"You must remember that most of these schools are identified as under performers. Schools that lack laboratories and libraries, these are the schools that need this programme. We bring in the best performance teachers to assist the pupils and guide them in the right direction," Pulumani said. - Chanice Koopman