I’ve been mentally journalling these thoughts for months since I started at Nova Pioneer on the 5th of September 2019. Coming here with a vast IT background, I have to admit that having worked as an IT Technician at a prestigious school in Parktown, I strongly believed I had an advantage in the IT/school environment.

 

I Was Wrong

 

I was wrong in thinking Nova Pioneer was like any other school. Yes, they have classes, teachers, sporting facilities – all that the Department of Education would require for a schooling environment – but what I’ve never experienced is the heart Nova Pioneer possesses.

My personal experience of schooling is a conflation of good and bad. Straight A student succumbing to mental issues, the principal office visits, ranging from worrying because of dropping my academic standard due to the aforementioned issues and pride in sporting victories. My schooling was a mixture of memorable lessons and ‘wish to be forgotten’ corridor incidents.

Nova Pioneer taught me, that all involved, have a passion beyond their job description. They are not looking to conveyor belt a thousand Einsteins but holistically wholesome innovators. They are not looking to funnel future Bill Gates but persons that connect with and for the world.

I’ve had the pleasure of being IT Coordinator for two campuses, North Riding and Ruimsig, and in both, there’s a noticeable difference but mammoth similarities.

 

Joy of Learning is two-ways

 

The kids are orderly, not military wise, but instruction is rather imparted than enforced. The gentleness is abundant but not spoilt or coddled. The teachings are adequate as they are challenging. The respect is palpable as it fills corridors and bounces off the visuals carefully and neatly plastered on the glass doors. The joy of learning is two-ways, teachers love to impart knowledge on eager minds and the students are attentive and visibly engaged. The trust is seamless, although earned over time, it is a marvel to watch.

Interacting with the students is proof of what the teachers and the whole Nova Pioneer institution are instilling in these young minds. Respect first, listen always, learn of self and others, freedom to be self, responsibility and accountability are imperative and have fun.

I am forever shell-shocked at how these children’s faces light up when they walk in through the entry gate, how, when they are sad they won’t shy away, but effectively communicate their feelings with no fear of possible repercussions for being honest, how they manage to get me smiling when they tell me about a new dog they have; it’s the humanity Nova Pioneer sprinkles on each child as they wear the blue and stride proudly into the premises.

I am always in awe of the teachers and staff of Nova Pioneer from the perspective of someone who adores children (and they adore me back, even calling me Uncle Siphiwe). Being someone who wishes for a child someday, it’s invigorating knowing that Nova Pioneer has the capabilities, the structure and enough kindness to be a core foundation for any child to not only dream big but also understand and learn to be a compassionate, empathic human because that’s what the world needs.

I was wrong about Nova Pioneer being just another school. Nova Pioneer is an institution, whose emphasis on learning is to be different, respectful, courteous, smart, innovative and most importantly, being human.

 

 

In celebration of ‘Make A Difference Day’ earlier this year, Nova Pioneer Midrand students successfully embarked on a book collection drive with the hope of donating their books to a school based in the Alexandra township, North of Johannesburg this December.  

The learning model of the Nova Pioneer schools fosters a great love of reading through daily read-aloud’s, guided reading and writers’ workshops. Our students donated pre-loved books to children who do not have easy access to books. “It was so heartwarming to see the enthusiasm from our Novaneers to share their books. They understand the magic of stories that lie between the covers of a book. Even the youngest students enjoy engaging with non-fiction text as they learn about the world around them,” says Jeanine Kerr, School Leader at Nova Pioneer Midrand.

Teachers know that the fastest and most effective way of improving academic results in children is to get them reading. Exposure to the written word builds vocabulary, comprehension, ability to predict and infer and improves writing skills. Other academic subjects also benefit indirectly from reading more. 

“As a school that is firmly entrenched in our culture principle, we believed that donating these books was an opportunity to give a gift of learning to other children,” says Kerr. 

Nova Pioneer Midrand offers private education and is currently enrolling from Grade 000 to Grade 7 in 2021.  For more information and application queries contact us via email on  admissions.midrand@novapioneer.com or call us on 064 946 6724.

At Nova Pioneer, we focus on providing a holistic education for our students that extends beyond the classroom. We strive to teach our students the values that will make them more socially responsible and to live out our Culture Principle of Servant Leadership.

“This term, Nova Pioneer Ruimsig embarked on a charity initiative for children who are less fortunate. We decided on the Santa Shoe Box charity drive,” says Carla Hercules, School Lead at Nova Pioneer Ruimsig. 

“We partnered with Eleanor from the Lighthouse Baby Shelter who gave us a list of items required and the age group of the children at her shelter. Our Ruimsig students and parents were very excited to participate in this worthy initiative. We were able to fill over 40 shoeboxes with stationery, toys, sweets and clothing. Our students wrapped and labelled each shoebox with pride while dressed in superhero civvies,” says Hercules. 

Nova Pioneer is extremely proud and thankful to our parents and students for supporting this initiative in a time when many are experiencing financial constraints.

“It was a very special morning as our students handed over the shoeboxes to a very emotional and grateful Eleanor from the Lighthouse Baby Shelter,” says Hercules. 

The Lighthouse Baby Shelter, founded in 2008 by Eleanor Dustan, is an orphanage situated at 48 Drysdale Road, Sundowner in Randburg that looks after children from birth to the age of six. 

Our Ruimsig campus is enrolling from 000 to Grade 3 for 2021. Complete an application on our website and an Admissions Associate will be in contact.

Nova Pioneer recently celebrated its valedictory ceremony for its Grade 12 students at Ormonde Secondary. The ceremony, which took place at the campus, saw students and staff maintaining all social distance protocols as well as live streaming for those students, speakers and family members who were unable to attend in person. 

“Nova Pioneer is proud of how quickly our students and teachers were able to adapt to learning during the pandemic this year. Because we follow the Cambridge curriculum, three groups of pupils sat exit exams over this time: Grade 11 (IGCSE), Grade 12 (AS) and Grade 13 (A-levels). All of these students had to pivot between ‘normal’ school, fully online and hybrid delivery systems while preparing for these high-stakes exams. We are incredibly proud of the perseverance and can-do approach that they displayed at all times”, says Theun Opperman, Head of School at Nova Pioneer Ormonde Secondary. 

2020 presented unprecedented challenges, with schools mandated to close in March. As a result, Nova Pioneer shifted immediately to virtual learning to support the continued learning of students. The anxiety associated with this sudden change was felt by all students and parents, but none more so than those in their final year of school. 

Ntando Makwela, the author of “The Dynamic Kid” and a student at Nova Pioneer Ormonde, started his address at the Grade 12 valedictory ceremony by saying that his class needed to celebrate the fact that one skill they have acquired through this year is ‘resilience’. 

“The class of 2020 have developed the skill of being able to learn on their own, with teacher support that looked and felt very different, through online platforms that have become their school experience in March. They were always very aware that they would be writing international exams and as such had no choice but to leverage technology and each other throughout this period”, says Ntando Mlilo, Dean of Students at Ormonde Secondary. 

“One of the biggest achievements of the class of 2020 was to maintain the connection in the school throughout this remote climate. This was achieved through having school-wide conversations around topical issues, such as ‘Black Lives Matter’ and ‘Gender-based violence’.  Planned and moderated by students, these termly conversations ensured a sense of unity within the student body. What one can learn from the class of 2020 is that resilience is built when young people are given the opportunity and platform to independently persevere through challenging times”, says Mlilo. 

Nova Pioneer is a proudly African independent school network that builds and operates world-class facilities offering affordable education. As a testament to its commitment and perseverance to excellence, Nova Pioneer is celebrating some fantastic achievements from its second class of Grade 12’s since opening in 2015.  

The Nova Pioneer concept is the brainchild of Chinezi Chijioke whose vision is to produce world-class African leaders and thinkers who will power the continent forward. The Harvard and Stanford graduate has a life-long passion for education and always dreamed of being a part of a team that would develop schools across Africa to unleash the incredible potential of the continent’s youth.

Part of Chijioke’s vision was to offer a holistic education to his students. This meant not only attending to their scholastic needs but also building character.  “Our vision of a Novaneer is centered on three ‘C’s: character, capabilities, and connection.  The three together equip our students to solve problems, take on challenges and shape the world for the better.  Among the three Cs, the first is Character, because it is the foundation upon which distinctive capabilities, or the connections of a strong community, are built,” says Chinezi.  

The advent of Covid-19 in 2020 and the introduction of lockdowns has certainly changed the way we think and do things. From social gatherings, meetings and the way we deliver on education, we were forced to rethink life as we knew it. Now in the world of social distancing, working from home, face masks and regular sanitisation, we have to embrace a new reality which is ‘virtual reality’. Virtual meetings, virtual open days, webinars, virtual teaching and learning has become our ‘new normal’.

But how do we adapt? From social beings to this new virtual reality? Firstly, we have to look at the benefits of virtual reality. Secondly, we need to look at how virtual reality will impact our lives in a positive way. Introducing us to a new generation of thinkers, innovators and solutions-first leaders. All of whom will advance our lives beyond any challenging circumstance in education and beyond. As Nova Pioneer, we have had to embrace four key virtual reality aspects that form part of our ‘new normal’ as an educational institution.

 

Virtual teaching and learning:

 

While we were traditionally accustomed to face-to-face interaction in a classroom, Covid-19 has revealed to us our ability to teach and learn virtually through various tools that we have adopted. Delivering on our education promise of remote learning. ‘Google Classrooms’ have become our new way of teaching and learning.

It should be easy for us to embrace virtual teaching and learning when you consider all the benefits it presents.  This includes our students being able to receive a quality education, safely, in the comfort of their homes. For our Novaneer parents, the benefits include ensured safety of your child and their well-being, while learning from home, not to forget the savings on fuel and time spent in Johannesburg’s often terrible traffic.  

The introduction of virtual learning has encouraged our students to become independent thinkers, leading themselves to achieve their objectives with guidance from their teachers and support from their online classmates. If anything, virtual learning has allowed us to rethink what education may look like in a post-COVID-19 future, and from this lense, the future looks bright and full of wonder. 

 

Virtual Meetings:

 

Attending parent meetings are always a struggle, common scenarios include parents needing to take time off work, meetings running over the available time of the parent, last-minute cancellations, etc.  In comes the introduction of virtual meetings – your time, your space and no traffic. Most importantly, parents have that ample opportunity for a close connect with the teacher, with little to no time limitations, ensuring the parent is completely tuned in to the students’ growth throughout the year.

 

Webinars:

 

Nova Pioneer is not just a school, but a learning institution that is rich with information and knowledge which we aim to constantly share with our Novaneer parents and community through our webinars. Our goal is to share enriching and helpful information on the education sector giving our parents insight into what we do here at Nova Pioneer, how we live through our culture principals while striving steadily towards our vision. The best part is that we are embracing the joy of learning, all from the comfort of your office or home. You can listen to some of our recent Nova Pioneer Connect webinars here.

 

Virtual Open Days

 

Inge, one of our Admissions Specialists, shares with us how the Admissions landscape has had to adapt during this time: 

“School Open Days are essential as they provide our potential Nova Pioneer parents with the opportunity to meet with the school leaders. Learning more about our curriculum and understanding our learning approach. It is also a platform for you to ask as many questions about our school. 

Nova Pioneer has adjusted our application process and created The Virtual Admissions Experience to answer all your enrolment needs from the safety and comfort of your home. 

Whether you have put in an application or not, you are welcome to attend the Nova Pioneer Virtual Open Day. Each Nova Pioneer campus in our network hosts their own open day via Google-meet.

It is undeniable that virtual reality has become a large part of our lives during the pandemic and it’s certainly here to stay. We can also appreciate that it has presented us with an opportunity to deliver a unique learning solution to the pandemic ensuring our learners don’t miss a beat, helping them thrive in this new world and assisting them in reaching their learning outcomes for the year. We have become a people without limits, solutions-first leaders and innovators, who deliver on high expectations.