2021 WESSA Annual Review

EDTEA PROJECT

The #WOW Project has delivered ½ day workshops to schools in the eThekwini, uMgungundlovu and uMhlatuze Municipalities since October 2020. The WESSA Educator works alongside the school to design a curriculum-support lesson, focusing on specific outcomes, objectives, and topics. These range from all ages, class sizes and subjects. Lessons include: COVID-19 Awareness, Zoonosis, Geography, Geomorphology, Natural Science, Environmental issues, Sustainability, Mangroves, Rivers, miniSASS, and even Art and English classes.

We have delivered the following #WOW Programmes since July 2020:

Municipality

Ethekwini

Umgungundlovu Umhlatuze

PRIMARY SCHOOLS Students Teachers HIGH SCHOOLS Students Teachers

13

11

16

1630 students reached

552

718

360

50

62

15

15

18

5

704 students reached

305

298

101

20

30

12

WESSA SCIENCE CENTRES

The WESSA Education Centre unit registered on the SAASTA (South African Agency for Science and Technology Awareness) platform in early 2020 to become accredited Science Centres. This platform falls under the Department of Science and Innovation’s National Research Foundation (NRF) business unit, and has the mandate to advance public awareness, appreciation and engagement of science, engineering, innovation, and technology in South Africa. TheSAASTAAuditing teamspent 3days auditingour programmes, facilities, procedures, and governance structures in May 2021. The feedback was complementary about the quality of WESSA’s professional team, and the approach to delivering of scientific concepts through our programmes. They see huge potential in having WESSA as a partner because of the wide range of opportunities we bring to Science Education in South Africa. They commended our unique resources, facilities, our access to pristine natural environments and our focus on key environmental issues including biodiversity loss, climate change, environmental protection, environmental restoration, linkages to the SDGs and linkages to the National Curriculum Statement.

We are waiting with much anticipation the official accreditation and thus benefit from the many DSi funding streams.

24 Annual Review 2020-2021

Annual Review 2020-2021

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