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Coal powers up education

Although national matric results for 2015 proved to be somewhat disappointing, see how our Coal SA business has partnered with local communities to help improve high school education in our host communities.

Landau

Through an innovative partnership between our Landau colliery and eMalahleni’s Kopanang Secondary School, the school has achieved remarkable success having transformed what was previously a dysfunctional school into a frontrunner with a 95% pass rate in the 2015 matric exams.

In just five years, Kopanang’s matric pass rate has risen by an impressive 53%, despite the fact that its learners live in impoverished communities and face some desperate socioeconomic challenges.

The programme highlights the power of mentorship and leadership development, regularly provided by Landau colliery management and employees. The mine also finances a three-week study camp hosted on the school grounds in the run-up to the matric finals.

Kriel

The major focus of Kriel colliery’s social upliftment programme in 2015 was its substantial investment in Sibongamandla Secondary School. The project included the construction of modern science laboratories, a computer centre, library, consumer studies facility and administration block along with new ablutions and a kitchen for its feeding scheme.

“Apart from paying much-needed attention to infrastructure, we continued to provide supplementary classes in maths and science. Learners achieved a pass rate of 92.6% compared with 87% the previous year,” says community development superintendent Margaret Phatlane.

“This achievement demonstrates the value of academic support and how improving a learning environment serves to motivate teachers and pupils,” she adds.

Kriel also provided supplementary classes at Lehlaka Combined School in Rietspruit, where the matric pass rate has risen from 54% to 85% in a single year.

New vaal

New Vaal colliery’s Star Schools programme provides 150 Grade 10, 11 and 12 learners from seven schools with intensive support in English, maths and science subjects. Of the 50 who wrote their matric finals at the end of last year, 100% passed.

“More than that, there was a 100% pass rate in maths and science, a great improvement over the previous year’s 75% and 95%,” says the mine's former community development manager Khulani Mthembu. 

Eighteen of the programme’s participants achieved level six matric passes for their commendable average of between 70% and 79%. 

Isibonelo

Isibonelo colliery launched its Yebo programme at Sizwakele Secondary School during mid-2015, with the goal of motivating and empowering school management and teachers through teamwork and capacity building.

The same approach was taken by Landau colliery which has achieved massive success at eMalahleni’s Kopanang Secondary School where results have risen from 13% to 95% over the past five years.

“Sizwakele’s matric pass rate has climbed from 64% in 2014 to 82% in the latest exam season,” says the mine’s community development superintendent, Fikile Mokwena, adding that Isibonelo will launch its learner incubator programme targeted at 11 local high schools at the end of January.

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