Johannesburg, South Africa – More than 350 technical skills educators will gather this week at the Premier Hotel OR Tambo in Johannesburg for a four-day conference. Organised and hosted by the Sasol Foundation, the conference will take place from Tuesday, 4 June 2019 to Friday, 7 June 2019. 

The theme for this year’s conference is to “empower technical teachers to deliver on the Three-Stream Model. This model looks at the Academic stream, the Technical-Vocational stream, and the Technical-Occupational stream providing learners with an opportunity to choose the pathway that is best suited to their capabilities. 

“The intentions of this year’s conference is multifold. It envisages to expose teachers to industrial artisan training equipment, review the Technical Mathematics and Technical Science learner performance in  the 2018 National Senior Certificate (NSC) examination results  and expose teachers to industry 4.0 innovative thinking”, says Vusi Cwane, Head of the Sasol Foundation. 

Commenting on the introduction of the Three-Stream Model, Cwane said this is an exciting development that aims to ensure that education is inclusive and takes into consideration the different capabilities and abilities of learners. “Its implementation, as proposed by the DBE in the context of Industry 4.0, opens opportunities for our learners to have diversified and innovative skills as well as competencies that will allow them to design products that will improve the lives of South Africans.” 

In South Africa youth unemployment rate sits around 55.20%, according to Statistics South Africa. Quality technical and vocational training is key to decreasing high unemployment rate and is necessary to promote the impact of skills training for marginalised youth. It is within this premise that Sasol Foundation strategically decided to invest in technical and vocational education, concluded Cwane.