Masicorp’s Maths Lab at Ukhanyo Primary School in Masiphumelele is something you must visit to truly grasp. The Lab’s alternative teaching methods encourages children to learn maths through fun and interactive games – all whilst inspiring learners with unique learning tools such as white boards to allow for adaptive learning. 

Maths Made Fun

A common challenge in many schools is that teachers are under pressure to move through the curriculum as fast as they can to cover all the areas of work that needs to be taught. This is especially in true in schools like Ukhanyo Primary, where class sizes are large, and resources are stretched. The Masicorp Maths Lab approaches learning differently, changing teaching strategies and meeting learners at their level of understanding.

For example, in our Maths clubs we aim to build confidence and a positive attitude towards Maths through games. This allows children to explore their inner potential and learn the way that makes sense to them by making mistakes and figuring out the problem on their own.

Core Values Drive Results

The Maths Lab core values also focus on building positive teachers who produce learners who want to succeed. That is one of the most inspiring things to witness in the Lab – success.

When we visited The Maths Lab – one little girl in Grade 3 was learning multiplication tables using flash cards. She raised her hand and said she is ready to be tested. She blazed through the first lot and got to write her name on the board. A moment later she had raised her hand and she said she was ready to go again. To our amazement – she worked her way quickly through the next lot of times tables. She could have kept going all day. The fact that learners earn a sticker for every multiplication table mastered drives them to learn and by placing a sticker on the board this notion of success filters down to the students and it’s a contagious spirit that drives a fun learning atmosphere.

“One of our Maths Lab values encourages teachers to talk less and give bite sized instructions. This allows learners to be able to practice more and engage with the material, this value gives learners the space to use their brains to think about what they are learning. As you may know, each learner is different and they all have their own unique way of learning, The Maths Lab also accommodates kinesthetic learners, these are students who learn by movement.”

-Nokuthula Gomba (Maths Lab Programme Leader).

Introducing Peter Schutte

Peter has recently joined us, settling in well at Ukhanyo Primary School. He was blown away by the Maths Lab Core Values. As a Mathematics educator and researcher, he believes that the core values we implement in the Maths Lab at Ukhanyo are ahead of their time. He went on to explain that it is not just because of the theory, but rather because how our team has successfully managed to implement these values in teaching sessions.

Peter has done extensive mathematics research and he pointed out that “students can’t just sit at a desk and be expected to learn – according to research; it is proven that students need to engage and problem solve, learning through trial and error and in so doing stimulating their brain towards a growing understanding through simulated interaction in the classroom and this is why the ‘white boards’ we use in the lab work so well.”

To find out more about our Maths Lab programme, you can get in touch by e-mail.

Thank you for helping us reach children living in Masiphumelele, giving them the tools they need to thrive in an ever-changing world. You can support our work here.