CHSA prepares students for the future
Christel House SA prepares young students for the future through coding
Non-profit school, Christel House SA, has officially launched coding as a compulsory subject from Grades 1 to 7. Based in Ottery, Cape Town, the school offers no-fee scholarships to students from the poorest neighbourhoods on the Cape Flats. In line with global technology trends, the school acknowledges that coding will become a basic literacy requirement in the digital age and that understanding the fundamentals of technology will be essential to securing a job in the future. The program is proudly supported by Dell Technologies, a long-standing information communications technology (ICT) partner of the school.
Christel House employed a dedicated coding teacher and currently, each grade has one hour of coding per week. Program lessons focus on core introductory themes ranging from the basic functionality of devices, the structure of an operating system and how to code logic statements, concepts, and variables. Thanks to Dell Technologies, the school has a one-to-one student to device ratio, allowing each student to code on their own tablet during lessons.
“Teaching a child at an early age how to code facilitates critical thinking, helps with problem-solving, instill a love for mathematics and helps to become more ‘future proof’ in a changing global environment. Having made coding compulsory for our Junior School learners, we are introducing them to the world of computer science, which will enable them to be fully prepared for the 2030 workplace, “says Carol Kriel, Junior School Principal, at Christel House SA.
Coding is offered as optional subject in Christel House’s High School with many students eager to pursue a career in coding and software engineering. The school also proudly offers Robotics as an extra-curricular subject in both their Junior and High School and have participated in the National World Robotics Olympiad since 2017. Through Christel House’s in-house College & Careers Department, students receive individual career guidance and support throughout their school career and for an additional five year’s post school. In doing so, the non-profit ensures that students complete their studies and find gainful employment in a career of their dreams.
“We believe that, now more than ever, it is paramount that impoverished youth are equipped with the critical skills needed to bridge the digital divide and step into a 21st century society where they can have equal opportunity to succeed”, added Kriel.
Christel House welcomes coding and robotics industry partners to engage with them on their various programs, and in particular with offering potential vacation work, learnerships or internships to its aspiring coding students. Contact details: marketing@sa.christelhouse.org.
More about Christel House
Christel House South Africa is a non-profit school with a single mission: to break the cycle of poverty. It offers no-fee scholarships to students from some of Cape Town’s poorest neighbourhoods and support them for 19 years (Grade RR to Grade 12 and five years post-matric) through character-based and career-focused education. The school’s beneficiaries include 762 students from grade RR to 12, 250+ post-matric students and more than 3000 parents and other members of the communities it serves.
The main criterion for admission to Christel House is not evidence of talent – but evidence of poverty, one measure of which is a maximum average income of R1,500 per household member per month. Key aspects of Christel House’s model include poverty mitigation services in the form of daily transport to school and back, professional health care, nutritious meals, psychosocial counselling, family assistance and college and careers planning and support.
Christel House transforms the lives of its students and help to build self-sufficient, contributing members of society.