NELSON Mandela Metropolitan University’s Accounting winter school programme, geared towards helping Grade 11 and 12 pupils improve their marks and their chances of attending university, boasts an impressive track record.
Almost a third of the on average 500 pupils who attend the Grade 12 winter school successfully registered for degrees or diplomas at NMMU. An analysis comparing their June matric results with their December results has revealed that many of them shot up by as much as 30%. Overall, more than half showed improved results from June to December. Lyle Ressouw, one of the winter school’s top achievers in 2014, came third in the province overall in December.
This year’s week-long Accounting winter school for Grade 12s, sponsored by Deloitte, takes place from July 4 to July 8, while the four-day Grade 11 winter school, sponsored by PricewaterhouseCooper (PwC), takes place from July 4 to July 7.
Ansulene Prinsloo, NMMU Accounting 1 lecturer and coordinator of NMMU’s Accounting winter school programme, said: “The main aim of the Accounting winter schools is to help learners obtain higher Admission Points Scores (APS), which is their entrance ticket to higher education.”
NMMU second-year BCom Rat (Computer Science) student and Tegkor busary holder Luthando Mbaza, 20, who attended the Grade 12 school, said the individual attention learners received in the winter school’s tutorial groups had helped him change his approach to accounting – leading to a 10% improvement in his matric results. “The tutorials helped me realise that I needed to understand accounting, not just memorise it.”
He said the winter school had also made for an “easier transition” into varsity life. “I knew where everything was; I didn’t get lost.”
NMMU second-year BCom Rat (Economics) student Sumaiya Moses, 19, a recipient of NMMU’s prestigious Vice-Chancellor’s Scholarship for top-performing matrics, said the winter school had helped her identify her weak areas – and her marks had also improved by about 10%.
The Grade 12 winter school covers the entire matric curriculum, while the Grade 11 school covers the four main topics of the Grade 11 Accounting curriculum. “These are all topics that pupils will continue studying in Grade 12,” said Prinsloo. “The foundation of Grade 11 is so important – if this foundation is not solid enough, they are going to battle in Grade 12 … Pupils also don’t realize the importance of their Grade 11 marks – these also have to be sent in with their forms when applying to study at a university.”
The winter school programme is taught using the School of Accounting’s teaching model – which includes a combination of lectures, tutorial classes and homework.
Tutors for the third year in a row include third-year BCom (Chartered Accounting) students and members of NMMU’s prestigious PinnAcle Leadership Programme, Roxanne Weiss and Jessica Chemaly, both of whom attended NMMU winter schools when they were at school.
As a tutor, Weiss, 21, said, it was encouraging to see learners trying to improve their marks in the tutorials. “Some of the learners come from schools where they don’t have teachers or textbooks.”
Chemaly, also 21, said: “I love seeing the learners grasping concepts and asking questions … The lecturers really know what they’re talking about and the learners are able to make connections they didn’t know in class. Accounting makes so much more sense.”
Attendees at the winter schools also receive career and bursary information – and are taught how to apply to university.
In addition to providing funding to cover the operating costs of the schools, Deloitte and PwC are donating files for every attendee, as well as 60 lucky draw prizes. There will also be prizes for the top three participants as well as the most improved pupil. These include a Samsung Galaxy Tablet and gift vouchers.
Attendance for the Grade 11 or Grade 12 Accounting winter schools costs R60 per learner. Application forms are available on the NMMU School of Accounting’s website (http://accounting.nmmu.ac.za), alternatively contact the Marketing and Engagement Team on 041 504 2620/4690 for more information.
Alan Straton
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