The Sunday News
Lungile Tshuma, Sunday News Correspondent
MATHEMATICS has been regarded as a difficult subject, one reserved for those who are intellectually super gifted but wait until you meet a teacher at Mpopoma High School in Bulawayo.
The teacher, Mr James Rugwevera has over the years produced strings of As in the subject and in this year’s June O-level examinations he produced 21 As out of the 23 pupils that sat for Mathematics with two pupils getting a B.
“Mathematics is not that difficult as many people say,” said Mr Rugwevera with a beaming smile, adding: “What makes Mathematics the easiest subject is that there are clear formulas that one has to follow and it is easy for pupils to master the formulas. What I can tell you is that every child has got a chance of passing Mathematics and what matters most are the teacher’s articulations.”
In 2006, Rugwevera’s first O-level examination class at Mpopoma High School had their results held after the examination mother body, Zimbabwe Schools Examinations Council (Zimsec) suspected that the paper might have leaked.
“Zimsec and provincial officers in the ministry came here to investigate the issue because all pupils got As in Mathematics.
Pupils who wrote the examination asked the investigating officers to set another examination paper which they could come and invigilate to prove that the paper did not leak,” he said laughting loudly.
For that year, all 20 pupils who sat for that June examination got As while for the November examination 16 pupils got As.
The 36 As he recorded with the 2006 examination class still stands as a record and is yet to be broken.
“The 2006 class still makes me proud. They were a good class and I am now looking forward to breaking the record with this year’s examination class. What I need are just 20 As for the November examination as already I have 21 As from the June examinations. I am confident I will get them because everyone is committed,” he said.
One of Mr Rugwevera’s 2006 pupils Ashgirl Chapfuwa managed to get a Bill Gates scholarship. Their departmental policy is that a teacher takes a class from Form 1 to Form 4 so that they completely own the results and are responsible for any consequences that may arise.
His second examination class was 2011 where he managed to produce 20 As, the results which he said were poor as a result of the harsh economic conditions of 2007 to 2008 which demotivated both pupils and teachers. The disappointment of the 2011 results affected him.
For his secret to success, Mr Rugwevera said Mathematics should be taught as a social subject rather than a science subject where lived experiences should be used to introduce a topic.
“What is important is that Mathematics should be made easier for pupils through the use of social examples that they can relate with when they are mathematically applying concepts. More so, passion and dedication as a teacher is crucial where we don’t have to think about doing things for money but also to for our pride,” said Mr Rugwevera.
He also paid tribute to the school’s administration led by Mr Christopher Dube which he said gave teachers every reason to sweat out for their classes aiming to produce good results to position them well in the province and country as well.
Mr Rugwevera said his workmates in the Mathematics department were very supportive as they worked as a team to help each other in preparing pupils for examinations.
The holder of a degree in Physical Education, Mr Rugwevera said some of his workmates were examination markers hence helped in giving pupils an insight into the examiner’s expectation.
Soon after graduating from Belvedere Technical Teachers College majoring in Mathematics and Physical Education he went to teach at Mandlethu Secondary School in Lupane, Matabeleland North Province in 1990. Teaching the rural poor who were walking long distances, Mr Rugwevera managed to produce a chain of ones in the then Zimbabwe Junior Certificate (ZJC) examinations.
Mr Rugwevera is a man of different talents. He is also the sportsmaster and plays a key role in taking the Under-17 boys soccer team to the quarter-finals of the Copa Coca-Cola last year.
The school, which has been the beacon of success in the region has produced prominent and notable figures like Professor Jonathan Moyo, who is the Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development Minister, Zimbabwe Electoral Commission chairperson Justice Rita Makarau, who became the first female Judge President and former CEO of MTN Group Limited Mr Sifiso Dabengwa.
