Page 34 - EngineerIT April May Issue 2026

EDUCATION

STEM starts with access

By Nicola Killops

outh Africa’s engineering and South Africa’s skills shortage is often discussed at the level of industry,
technology future may depend on infrastructure and economic demand. Those conversations are
Swhether more young people are given a necessary, but they can miss something more basic. If learners are shut
fair chance to enter the world of STEM learning. out of strong teaching in maths, science and English, the flow of future
talent narrows long before university or the job market comes into view.
That is where schools like LEAP Science and
Maths Schools come in. LEAP works directly against that pattern. Its schools serve high-need
communities, but the model does not lower the bar. It raises it. The
When I visited LEAP 4 in Diepsloot, what school day is longer. Academic expectations are serious. Support is
stayed with me was the atmosphere. The structured. Mathematics, physical science and English are compulsory.
campus felt focused and calm. Learners The aim is not simply to help learners pass. It is to prepare them for
carried themselves with pride. Staff spoke with futures that might otherwise have felt out of reach.
conviction. There was structure, warmth and
expectation in equal measure. It is the kind of At LEAP 4, that broader vision comes through clearly
environment that shifts what young people in the way the school speaks about its learners and
believe is possible for themselves. their future. School leader Progress Masilo has
described the school, the family and the learner
LEAP is opening access to strong maths as the three legs of a tripod. If one breaks, the
and science education for learners from structure falls. James Malope, LEAP’s Advancement
communities that have historically had Leader, touts the "head, heart and hand"
far fewer opportunities. In a country that approach to learning. The hand does the
continues to talk about the need for more work, the heart understands and the
engineers, technicians, artisans, scientists and head makes sense of it.
problem-solvers, that work begins long before
the workplace. It begins in schools. Progress Masilo

34 | EngineerIT April/May 2026