Teneo School is one of the best home schooling options in South Africa. They offer grades 4 to 12 with a CAPS Matric Senior Certificate in English and Afrikaans.
There is also the British GCSE, AS and A Levels for those parents wanting their children to have an international education. Coding, extra maths and an Adult Matric are also available.
I am a parent of a Grade 8 scholar at Teneo School so I can speak with some authority when I say that this school is fantastic.
Home Schooling at Teneo School
Home schooling has grown in popularity over the past few years. There are many reasons why more and more parents are choosing home schooling. These include being dissatisfied with the quality of schools in their area, not liking the education curriculum and being unhappy with bullying and lack of discipline at normal schools.
For many parents home schooling is the only option because of their remote location or having to travel and change locations because of their jobs.
There are also those parents who would like their child home schooled but don’t have the time to get involved in hands-on teaching.
Teneo School can solve most of these problems.
Whereas most home school systems require the parents to be very involved and in some cases to even teach their kids, Teneo School does not require any more parental interaction than a typical government school.
The reason for this is that Teneo School is a DIGITAL school.
Digital schooling
My daughter attends classes every day on her computer. She has class mates, teachers for different subjects and a rigid timetable of classes, projects, home work and exams.
All classes are conducted via Zoom and my daughter can see her classmates and teacher in real time. The teacher interacts with her students as if she were in a physical classroom. Children are reprimanded when not focused, helped when they request assistance and carefully guided through their subject by qualified and experienced teachers.
John Shaw, CEO and Head Master of Teneo School, says, “Teneo School’s qualified teachers are passionate about using digital technology to empower every student’s learning journey. Offering timetabled live classes through a structured approach, Teneo uses a cutting-edge learning management system to deliver quality education.”
Quality of Education
My daughter previously attended a rather expensive private school and my concern in moving to Teneo School was that there would be a drop in the quality of her education.
I need not have worried because Teneo School’s curriculum was more advanced and in key subjects such as maths and science, Teneo School was a full six months ahead. I had to send my daughter to extra maths to help her catch up.
Apart from the great curriculum and excellent teachers I found that Teneo School offered a number of other advantages.
The first is that my daughter now has a thorough understanding of computers. She uses her laptop more than I use mine. She types like a pro, uploads, downloads, converts files, makes and edits videos and uses technology better than most of my work place colleagues.
Secondly, she was able to participate in the sports and activities that she really enjoys. She is not a team sport person and far prefers her own company and focusing on achieving her own goals. She has flourished in all manner of extra mural activities that she would not normally have had the chance to enjoy.
Projects and exams
Projects require just as much dedication as physical school. However, there is one more level to which Teneo School takes their students. Projects must be photographed and/or videoed, edited and then uploaded showing that the project is completed and the desired results have been achieved.
Exams require scholars to stay in front of their computer cameras for the duration of the exam. If they leave the camera focus area they are disqualified.
Parental control and information
Parents are given their own user name and password to access the Teneo School system. Once in the system they can monitor their child’s progress, class attendance and test and exam results.
On the few occasions that I have needed assistance from the school they have answered my telephone calls and emails promptly and dealt with my queries in a timely and effective manner.
Conclusion
I have watched my daughter mature and grow since her involvement with Teneo School. She has gained self-discipline and learnt how to work in the digital realm.
I waste less time not having to travel to and from school in rush hour traffic and the Teneo School is very affordable.
Perhaps the ultimate accolade for this school is that my daughter is happy and successful. She even went so far as to thank me for getting her into Teneo School.
I couldn’t be happier.
To find out more about Teneo School visit their website by clicking here. Contact them via email: hello@teneoeducation.com or call their Enrolment Manager, Karen, on 011 073 3841. To register for an information webinar click here.
