On Tuesday, 28 November 2017, Premier Helen Zille congratulated the silver and bronze winners of the Best Practice in After School Programmes, a new addition to the Ministerial Youth Excellence Awards. At the ceremony in Cape Town, Premier Zille spoke about the importance of youth development.
Premier Zille said: “The Western Cape Government currently spends R9.8 billion of its overall provincial budget on youth related initiatives. We are working hard to create the necessary environment for young people to access and leverage opportunity where required. And we are committed to partnerships that will level the playing field for so many of our learners”.
The Best Practice in After School Programmes Award is an initiative of the Western Cape Government After School Game Changer together with the Department of Social Development. It is given to outstanding non-governmental organisations and individuals who have contributed to youth development and best practice in the after school sector.
Silver Winner: OLICO
Learner performance in mathematics is one of the biggest challenges facing the South African schooling system today. According to the latest research, by the time South African learners reach Grade 9, they are on average, 3-4 years behind where they should be mathematically. For the past five years, OLICO, the organisation awarded the silver prize in the Best Practice in After School Programme, has been working to provide effective and scalable solutions to this problem.
“We are single-mindedly focused on improving mathematics performance,” said OLICO’s Peter Wächtler. “We do this in Grade 8 and 9 by creating a pathway into high school mathematics that bridges gaps in learner knowledge to produce success in matric. OLICO blends tailored tutoring and technology to bring learners up to the curriculum and then achieve maths success.”
In the Western Cape, OLICO is currently the maths technology and training partner at five high schools on the Year Beyond programme, which provides volunteer tutors between the ages of 18 and 25 to serve as peer educators after normal school hours. Learners attend after school maths sessions at least twice a week, where they receive a blend of offline and online maths tutoring
Bronze winner: Kronendal Music Academy
Hout Bay has three distinct communities: Imizamu Yethu informal settlement, the Hangberg fishing village and the affluent “valley” residents. The main focus of bronze winner of the Best Practice in After School Programmes Award, Kronendal Music Academy, is “to provide music education in as many forms and styles as possible to Hout Bay’s under-privileged and economically challenged communities, while fostering a platform from which to initiate racial and social interaction and integration” amongst the area’s communities.
Most of the academy’s approximate 150 learners come from Hout Bay schools. Here, they are taught by 18 teachers who specialise in 22 instruments. As a result, the academy is highly sought after by more affluent learners who can afford the academy’s fees – there’s a long waiting list. These paying students help to subsidise those who cannot afford fees. Learners are collected from schools and delivered home to their doorsteps.
“I wish to commend all those who were recognized for their excellence at the Awards ceremony this evening,” said Premier Zille.
Original article available at: https://www.westerncape.gov.za/gc-news/97/48194