The P-Word: How online schooling enriches education

The P-Word podcast is a resource for parents to navigate parenting and everything that goes with it.

This week on the P-Word podcast, host Rushka Lee Pedro speaks to Hugo Mendes, Educational Consultant at Cambrilearn.

Online schooling has been available for many years, but since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic the demand for this type of education has increased as parents have seen the benefits.

Cambrilearn is an internationally accredited online school, offering a personalised education from Pre-Primary to Matric.

“We’re a virtual school. But we didn’t come about because of COVID, we have been going for 12 years now.

“The curriculum is fully accepted in South Africa. Cambridge means that you can go abroad with it and it qualifies you for International Studies. It’s fully recognized by South African universities and you come out with a matric equivalence,” he said.

While it is an online-focused platform, Cambrilearn also encourages social interactions and meeting in-person. The company places emphasis on the hybrid model of learning.

Mendes says that online learning doesn’t replace the need for having a teacher as there are teachers that facilitate learning and guide students through the process of online learning.

“You’re no longer confined to only schooling with the aid of a teacher, you can also go home and then enrich your schooling with the help of a platform that’s interactive, that’s going to be self-paced, that’s going to be flexible. You can access the material at any time, you can rewatch lessons that have been live streamed.

When it comes to Cambrilearn exams and tests, parents or adults need to administer and invigilate the process under controlled conditions. Exams need to be printed for the students and once they are done, they are sent to be externally marked.

Mendes says that Cambrilearn has also began to offer the CAPS curriculum.

“We launched it this year by popular demand, so many South Africans want to do online schooling but come out with a matric certificate,” he said.

Cambrilearn also offers an alternative British international curriculum called Edexcel and an American curriculum may soon be available.

For the P-Word podcast listeners, Cambrilearn is offering an 8% discount on lifetime purchases for 2023. To access this offer, use the promotional code: Rushka LP.