The Gauteng MEC for Education and Youth Development, Panyaza Lesufi, has launched the St Barnabas and UJ Metropolitan Mathematics, Science and ICT School of Specialisation with focus on High Tech and Innovation.
A partnership with Honeywell and Melisizwe Computer Lab Project ensures that 197 Grade 8 learners from both schools are equipped with software programming and other ICT skills, making computer literacy a foundation for high school education.
St Barnabas High School and UJ Metropolitan High School are Mathematics, Science and ICT schools of specialisation, with a series of courses in basic IT literacy, computer programming and robotics.
This is part of a wider initiative by the GDE to drive participation among learners in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) and ICT subjects, giving them skills needed to target the wide range of technology careers being created by the 4th Industrial Revolution.
“Through these partnerships and the initiatives they support, we are igniting a new level of hunger for learning about STEM and commit to helping our learners progress successfully through school. This will enable learners’ opportunities to build exciting technology and science-focused careers in the future, making a positive impact in our country and the world we live in,” says Lesufi.
Sean Smith, president: Africa at Honeywell, adds: “Industry 4.0 is shaping the future of how the world works and Honeywell’s innovations sit right at the forefront of this revolution. By investing in courses such as the Melisizwe Computer Lab Project, we are ensuring that young people in South Africa have the best possible start to their future technology careers so that they too can go on to help shape the way the world works through innovation.”