Sifiso EdTech Expands STEM Access With Robotics And AI Training At Joe Slovo High

Supplied image - front L-R: Inga Javu, Limise Kalolo, Mesuli Meneze and Shaun Ngubo (all Joe Slovo High School).Back L-R: Joe Slovo High School learners Minenthle Ngweni, Lultho Daniso, Maude Modise (Director of the Shoprite Foundation), Alulutho Mnyobe, Anam Kalman, Kungawo Mkhalali, Xoliswa Mahlangu (Head of Digital Learning and Technology at Sifiso EdTech) and Lisolethu Fana

The lab is equipped with microcontrollers, laptops, and robotics kits, designed to transition students from basic coding to advanced hardware design.

The curriculum is integrated directly into the school’s academic structure:

• Grades 8–9: Coding and robotics are part of the formal timetable, focusing on computational reasoning and electronics.
• Grades 10–12: After-school programmes cover advanced topics like artificial intelligence (AI) and the internet of things (IoT).

  Strategic Impact

  Implemented by Sifiso EdTech, the initiative provides both equipment and teacher training to ensure long-term integration. The programme aims to bridge the "opportunity gap" in under-resourced communities.

  “In a community where learners are highly capable but have limited access to advanced resources, our aim is to expand what is possible inside the classroom by bringing engineering, coding and artificial intelligence into the learning environment," says Maude Modise, director of the Shoprite Foundation.

  Minister of Basic Education Siviwe Gwarube, who attended the launch, emphasised that equipping youth with these technical skills is essential for Africa to thrive in a global economy.

  National expansion

  Joe Slovo Engineering High School — which maintains a matric pass rate of up to 99% — is the sixth site in the Shoprite Foundation’s national rollout. A seventh lab is scheduled to open in Soweto later this month in partnership with the Trevor Noah Foundation.