For the last ten years, the acclaimed all-girls Roedean School in Johannesburg has striven to provide learners from under-resourced schools with additional tuition through the “The Roedean Academy” initiative.
On weekday afternoons, as many as 100 young scholars from grade 8 to 12 at the neighbouring Barnato Park High School, also an all-girls school, are invited to the Roedean School, where teachers volunteer their time to provide extra tuition in Maths, English, Accounting and Physical Science.
The Role of The Answer Series
The Roedean Academy initiative is run entirely on donations, with the aim of providing high quality education to young learners, regardless of their circumstances. One such generous donation came from a Roedean School parent, who suggested providing each and every learner at the Academy with The Answer Series study guides in Maths, Accounting and Science.
To our delight, Kate Lowings from The Roedean Academy explains that The Answer Series study guides have made a real and tangible difference to the girls’ education, “The girls have commented that the books have helped them tremendously.” She elaborates, “These study guides are amazing as they’re easy to follow and the explanations are great. They have awesome examples and revision exercises.”
We design our study guides with versatility in mind; they are equally enlightening as either whole class material, or the learner can use them for their own independent study. “The girls are also able to practice the work in their own time in addition to being taught it. Each girl having her own study guide means that the girls can revise and practice the work either at home or at school.” Says Kate.
A Day at The Roedean Academy
The girls from Barnato Park high school arrive at 3pm and have a hot lunch. They’re free to visit the Roedean School Library and select books to take home before lessons start. The girls are divided into classes of twenty, allowing a more personal, student-centred learning experience.
Throughout the week’s lessons, the teachers from The Roedean School tutor the girls in Maths, Physical Science and English. Grade 8 and 9 learners come three days a week, and focus more on Maths and English.
It’s not all class time and study guides either — The girls are welcome to use the IT suite for research and help completing assignments.
‘The Next Step’: Creating Opportunities
Throughout the school year, the Roedean Academy also hosts Leadership Camps, Careers Days, Eye screening and testing, and First Aid training amongst other important, highly beneficial ventures. One of these is “The Next Step” programme, which guides the girls in their approach to finding tertiary work opportunities.
The aim of all this, according to our friend Kate Lowings, is simply, “To make the whole school experience more holistic.”
The Answer Series Mission
Since we created the very first Answer Series Study Guide all those years ago in 1975, our overarching mission has been to better the standards of education in South Africa. We are delighted, and very proud, therefore, to know that our study guides are helping the fantastic young learners from Barnato Park High School at The Roedean Academy.