Caxton Local Media is proud to have entered into a partnership with I Teach (‘Digicampus’) to help prevent more learners from dropping out of school by making parents and learners aware of affordable, quality, tutor-directed learner support available any time and from anywhere.
A startling number of the fresh-faced children who went to ‘big school’ for the first time in 2011 did not reach matric in 2023.
Concerning figures
“South Africa has near universal enrolment with over 98% of learners of compulsory school-going age (7-15 years) in school. However, only four in 10 of these learners will complete school. For the six out of 10 learners who do not have a Grade 12 qualification, they face higher chances of unemployment and a lack of access to further education,” reads an evidence-based report produced by the DG Murray Trust and released in January 2024.
The report states that ‘statistics on the percentage of learners that begin Grade One and complete matric, or the ‘throughput rate’, vary – with the Department of Basic Education putting this figure at 55%’.
“But one drop-out is one too many. Every child has the potential to thrive, and we believe background should not hold them back,” says I Teach CEO Mike de Klerk.
An opportunity to succeed
Wannita Boettger, Caxton’s senior project manager, agrees, saying that children who struggle in a traditional academic environment deserve every opportunity to succeed. “They might battle because of the stress of the classroom environment, bullying, or because they simply get lost in big classes. However, they must not be allowed to fall through the cracks,” she adds.
Caxton Local Media is committed to not only providing communities with fair, ethical and accurate news that enriches their lives, but also to doing what it can to uplift communities.
De Klerk explains that after developing an online learning support platform to ensure all South African students have access to quality education, Digicampus began offering students access to free recorded lessons developed by top educators.
“In March 2022, the X-Tra Classes product offering was launched, giving students access to an affordable online platform that provides learning support from Grades R to 12, covering all the major subjects in the CAPS curriculum.
“Our goal is to ignite a passion for learning and equip students for success in the digital age. We want to make our services accessible to as many learners as possible, so have kept the cost of our monthly subscriptions to the minimum,” says De Klerk.
Digicampus’ virtual classroom setting enables pupils the ‘opportunity to learn at their own pace, 24/7, 365 days a year, on any device’.
Servaas de Kock, Caxton’s group digital executive, says: “We are thrilled to contribute to the transformation of education through cutting-edge digital solutions.”
Product offerings
In the foundation phase (grades R to three), the languages of instruction are English, Afrikaans, isiZulu, and isiXhosa, while from Grade Four and up, they are English and Afrikaans.
An X-Tra Classes subscription includes all subjects within a grade, after-school supplementary support, and 24/7 online access. Lessons are sequenced as per CAPS teaching plans. Each class includes an overview, video, detailed summaries, test and answer set and an automated quiz to monitor progress.
A once-off online career guidance session is available to learners to help them make informed subject, career and job choices. The session provides a detailed assessment of strengths, interests, and personality traits and offers tailored recommendations to each learner.
In August, portals for parents will be launched to give them insights into their children’s studies, behaviour, results, and usage statistics.
Until July 15, grades R to 11 who subscribe for six months and get six months free, plus free trauma counselling (kid safe careline) for 12 months. Matrics who subscribe for three months will get three months free, plus six months of trauma counselling.
