Rino Motladile – Giving Maths the Jump Start it needs

Rino Motladile
Rino Motladile, maths tutor, is making a difference to young learners at Kingsway Christian School, Randpark Ridge.

Youth tutor, Rino Motladile (22), started as a maths tutor in 2018 at Kingsway Christian Primary School in Randpark Ridge, where children come from the Zandspruit informal settlement and nearby Cosmo City. The staff and sponsors of this school aim to provide life-enriching opportunities for socio-economically disadvantaged children who would previously have had limited options for bettering their lives. David Chang of Eve’s Tea has sponsored Rino’s position this year and he is delighted to hear of her progress with the school’s learners.

Public relations to student relations

“Tutoring maths has been a wonderful experience,” says Rino who is currently studying for a Diploma in Public Relations. “I learned a lot of good things, like starting our day with devotion which enabled me to grow spiritually, getting more in touch with God and helping me apply wisdom when dealing with situations related to COVID-19. I saw and understood that God is love when I saw impoverished children receiving food parcels and Bible verses from the school in the hard pandemic lockdown.”

Rino has seen the NumberSense programme’s impact over the last three years. “The children’s maths improves so that they enjoy it. They gain problem-solving skills. At first, I was doing NumberSense with the Foundation phase only. After two years, the principal suggested it should be done by the whole school because it was having such a positive impact on their maths.”

Making maths work… out

Rino enjoys her work. “The more children I help, the more fulfilment I get. Before starting lessons in the foundation phase I do physical exercises to help learners focus and concentrate. They like hand-to-knee exercises and star jumps while counting. It keeps them focused on having fun,” she explains. She hopes to register for a Bachelor of Education on completing her diploma. “I have fallen in love with working with kids and am very keen to improve their lives. I see myself as an innovative tutor, practising love, compassion, and patience towards the learners, especially those who are more challenged. If a learner needs it, I give them one-on-one sessions after school.”

Sleepless nights to fruitful days

For quite some time there were two young learners who kept her awake at night. Relebogile in Grade 2 couldn’t identify numbers, or order and compare them. “My first thought was she’ll never get it but I kept on trying with her. Now she’s naming, sorting and writing numbers. Khathutshelo started the year getting 30% in maths. His average at year end shot to 85%!”

Nobody failed maths!

Isabel Mlilo, a teacher at Kinsgway Christian Primary School, said, “Rino is doing well with NumberSense pays particular attention to learners who are struggling. She helped that learners practise counting on a daily basis, which resulted in most learners improving. Thank you for providing us with NumberSense which is always here on time. Nobody failed maths this term!” David Chang chatted about his engagement with JumpStart. He said, “We are grateful for the opportunity to contribute to the JumpStart Foundation, as tutors like Rino provide a brighter future for the youth of this country.”

Join the JumpStart journey

Would you like to partner with us to help youth like Rino reach their goals? We need sponsors to increase the impact of our programmes which give hope for youth employment. Email Betty Oliphant for more information on how you can make a difference to our country’s future educator. Alternatively, head to our donations page to make a financial donation.

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