EduRise unlocks power of partnership

Our EduRise team recently spent a brilliant Orientation Day in Hammarsdale with the principals of our primary school partners, representatives of the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Education, and our implementation partners.

It was a wonderful day of collaboration and immersive group activities. Our implementation partners Jet Education Services, Creative Madness and Sportstec unpacked their interventions for the year across areas of leadership and management, numeracy, literacy, creative arts and physical education.

We thank our partners for working together for better education outcomes. Poor quality education is a root cause of unemployment in South Africa – and an alarming 81% of Grade 4 learners cannot read for meaning*.

That’s why our efforts to tackle youth unemployment begin with education.

In the 2023 financial year, we invested R9.74 million in education, impacting 97 schools. In 2024, EduRise sharpened its focus to work directly with 21 primary schools in Hammarsdale.

Over the next three years, our implementation partners will collaborate and provide a suite of holistic support to these schools. Literacy and numeracy in Foundation Phase have been identified as a critical priority.

Peter Court, Director of Creative Madness, said this approach of engaging all three implementation partners in schools from Year 1 could reap dividends.??

“By putting those connections together from Year 1, we can treble the effect that we have. Creative arts and physical education are uniquely placed to enhance numeracy and literacy in Foundation Phase. The more fun learners have, the easier the education system becomes,” said Peter.

Craig Gibbs, Executive Manager: Implementation and Innovation at Jet Education Services, said it was critical that the building blocks of literacy and numeracy are laid in Foundation Phase.

“These are essential as children move into intermediate and senior school, where a lot of learners move away from taking maths and physical science because they don’t feel confident. It all stems from what you do at Foundation Phase,” Craig said.

The beauty of the EduRise programme is that it allows for innovation and collaboration, he said.

“We can see what works within schools and then adopt it. The educators, school management and the district can see the worth of what we are doing. They are very welcoming of the EduRise programme,” Craig said.?

Mr Ngubane from the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Education, Pinetown District Office, said partnerships were a powerful tool to improve education outcomes.

“We believe that together with Mr Price Foundation, that once learners have the correct foundation, things will be easier when they move up through the grades. This is through partnership, and the help that we need as a department. More than anything else we are happy for parents and for the learners themselves to have this opportunity of getting assistance and collaboration from Mr Price Foundation and all the associated partners.”?

We celebrate all our EduRise partners for their spirit of cooperation, collaboration and innovation. When we form partnerships for good, we can do great things!?

If you’d like to support EduRise, please make your donation here . Thank you!?

* Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) 2021?