For more than a quarter of a century, EMSS has nurtured future Maths and Science stars in the country and also evolved into a holistic programme that addresses school capacity shortfalls in needy areas. Last year was no different as learners from previously disadvantaged communities shone as they outperformed the national matric average in 2011.
There are currently eight Maths and Science schools strategically located at educational institutions across the country: at Zakariya Park Secondary in Gauteng, the Mangosuthu Institute of Technology, University of Kwazulu-Natal, Fairvale Secondary School in KwaZulu-Natal, the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University in Port Elizabeth, University of Fort Hare in East London and Cala High School in the Eastern Cape.
The schools have been established to address the country's as well as industry's key skills shortages in the engineering and technical fields. The schools expose grade 10, 11 and 12 learners who show potential in the subjects of Maths, Science and English, to high quality teachers and educational materials.
The country's matric pass rate was 70.2% in 2011, while EMSS schools achieved 96.5% nationally - an impressive increase of 3.5% on the pass rate achieved by learners in 2010.
Individually, there was an increase in the number of learners who achieved university entrance in 2011 as compared to the previous year - from 61.2% in 2010 to 65.63% in 2011. All the EMSS centres, except Cala High School, obtained distinctions, which tallied to a total of 157.
"What makes us proud is the knowledge that our programme continues to contribute positively to the advancement of learners from previously disadvantaged schools and communities who, without this programme, might have found it extremely challenging to achieve such commendable accolades," said Engen's Corporate Social Investment manager, Khanyisa Balfour.
