#AppreciationMonday: Student develops a Mathematics App to help his struggling peers
Got a math problem, who you gonna call? 'Mathgeek'!
Life as a student has been anything but smooth sailing since the pandemic came to be. Under normal circumstances it is challenging, but with the introduction of the pandemic, it's definitely more difficult to cope.
With the removal of one-on-one interaction and the yo-yo patterns of lockdown levels, students have had to reinvent the ways they learn and do things. One of the main things they have had to adapt to, is using the internet more reliantly than before.
Of course, times have changed since our time in school, when our points of reference would be the library or the encyclopedia. Nowadays children have full access to the world wide web. As much as that can be daunting for those of us who know it's dangers, it is also offers a wealth of knowledge if used correctly.
This is definitely the case for Kutlwano Tshatiwa, the grade-11 student who saw a gap amidst his peers when it came to solving mathematics problems and decided to do something about it. His app is called 'Mathgeek' and is available on Google Play Store.
"The 16-year-old at Gabonewe High School in Madikwe township, North West, is a self-taught computer boffin who is one of the two finalists from the Eskom Expo for Young Scientists to be given an opportunity to virtually present his app at this year’s Buca International Music, Science, Engineering Energy Fair (Imsef) in Turkey." (MSN)
Kutlwano is a self taught prophecy when it comes to the art of coding and development, but his passion and drive is what got him noticed by the Eskom Expo for Young Scientists.
At school we don't have computer labs so I decided to use the internet to learn about developing apps. I realised there were many apps in the market so I introduced a feature where one types in their mathematics problem and they receive a response same time. It is only now that I got advanced training in computer studies. And I want to study computer science and maths when I complete my Grade 12.
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Nthato Minyuku, Eskom group executive: government and regulatory affairs, shared that students' participation in science fairs helped them take their research and their fields of interest to new levels.
We couldn't agree more, and we love what this young man is doing, he is literally breaking so many boundaries in his ingenuity and we wish him all the best in his future.
Participating in international science fairs is an unrivalled opportunity for South African learners to take their research to the next levels. Not only do they take to the global stage, but they also display their talent and benefit from the exposure to other brilliant entries from across the globe.
Image Courtesy of Google Play Store