AVBOB launches AVBOB STEP 12 – an educational support programme for Grade 12 learners

AVBOB has just launched an educational support programme called STEP 12 – a language programme comprising FREE Examination Preparation Guides for Grade 12 teachers and learners. This programme was developed to assist Grade 12 learners to pass their home language and first additional language as these are compulsory subjects and should be passed with a minimum of 40%.

True to AVBOB’s brand promise ‘We’re here for you^®’ and in recognition of the support South Africa’s teachers need in their roles as educators of the next generation, AVBOB STEP 12 is intended to get learners ready for their Grade 12 language examinations and to reduce exam anxiety.

In response to government’s call on the private sector to get involved and assist in enhancing quality learning and teaching in schools, AVBOB, in partnership with the Department of Basic Education, is striving to make a lasting impact on South Africa’s educational landscape.

“With STEP 12, AVBOB introduces a new channel to deliver on our commitment to supporting education in South Africa, alongside our ongoing investments in literacy programmes, schools’ infrastructure, container libraries and the support of poetic arts,” says Carl van der Riet, AVBOB’s CEO.

The AVBOB STEP 12 programme will be available in all eleven (11) official languages, with three (3) Examination Preparation Guides per language subject, resulting in a total of thirty-three (33) study guides.

“The AVBOB STEP 12 programme is aimed at the language subjects in the Grade 12 syllabus since language is the gateway to knowledge,” adds Van der Riet. “We hope that the AVBOB STEP 12 programme will serve as a blueprint for teacher and learner assistance and that other segments of the private sector will join in at a later stage to design similar programmes for other Grade 12 subjects, such as Mathematics, Physical Sciences and Business Studies.”

The private sector is an increasingly important player in assisting government to provide education services and high quality education to communities and marginalised groups, particularly in rural areas. A lack of quality teaching resources as well as an overload of teaching and administrative duties mean that teachers, especially in rural schools, can feel isolated and unsupported, which negatively affects teaching effectiveness.

The AVBOB STEP 12 Examination Preparation Guides are designed to improve learners’ achievement in the three (3) papers in each language subject, i.e. Language in Context, Literature and Creative Writing. Successfully writing these papers plays a critical role not only in passing matric well but also in preparing our learners for further studies, effective communication in the workplace and social settings, and developing critical thinking skills.

The structure and contents of the Examination Preparation Guides are based on the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) prescribed by the Department of Basic Education. 

Although the AVBOB STEP 12 Examination Preparation Guides are aimed at Grade 12 learners to assist them in completing their final school year, Grade 11 learners stand to benefit from exposure to the direction outlined in the Grade 12 syllabus. In both design and content, the AVBOB STEP 12 Examination Preparation Guides are based on needs communicated by teachers in consultation, and the programme is supported by the Department of Basic Education.

How to access the AVBOB STEP 12 programme and Examination Preparation Guides

The AVBOB STEP 12 guides can be downloaded for FREE at www.avbobstep12.co.za from 14 June 2023. The AVBOB STEP 12 Facebook page (www.facebook.com/AVBOBSTEP12) provides a rendezvous for Grade 12 teachers.

Specialists with years of experience in the education sector serve as advisors for the AVBOB STEP 12 programme: Dr Adriaan Coetser (Subject Advisor in Chief), Miranda Jonas (Afrikaans Subject Advisor), Princess Bembe (English Subject Advisor), Piet Masilela (isiNdebele Subject Advisor), Nonhlanhla Maphumulo and Dr Isaac Mndawe (isiZulu Subject Advisors), Dr Pumla Maqhude (isiXhosa Subject Advisor), Vinolia Masha (Sepedi Subject Advisor), Sedie Monamodi and Seanokeng Sehume-Hlakoana (Setswana Subject Advisors), Nthabiseng Gada (Sesotho Subject Advisor), Dr Jameson Mashego (Siswati Subject Advisor), Julia Nedzharata (Tshivenda Subject Advisor), and Louisa Ndobela Mononyane and Ebby Machimana (Xitsonga Subject Advisors).

About AVBOB Mutual Assurance Society

AVBOB is a mutual society and has no shareholders. AVBOB members benefit from profits in the form of special bonuses and enhanced funeral benefits. AVBOB also gives back to the communities it serves through corporate social investment (CSI) initiatives and upliftment projects, several of which are in the space of education and literacy.