Stiaan Scheepers flies the math’s flag for South Africa
For most teenagers, draping a South African flag and holding up a trophy happens when one wins a track race, aces a tennis tournament or excels on the rugby field. But for Stiaan Scheepers, it’s winning bronze (3rd) at the 2022 Junior Mental Calculation World Championships held in Bielefeld in Germany – and being one of the best human calculators in the world – and not for the first time either!
This whizz-kid started his journey with the education franchise A+Students when he was just 3 years old in Rustenburg and today, ten years later, he has multiple achievements including runner-up at the 2018 and 2019 World Cups as well as 7th and 10th place in previous World Cups including multiple Champions and Champion of Champion awards in international abacus & mental arithmetic competitions around the globe. No stranger to travelling abroad to compete, Stiaan Scheepers not only whizzed his way to third position in the competition but picked up the ‘Best Friend Award’ for his popularity and being a true ambassador for South Africa!
Attracting over 50 competitors from around the world, youngsters from countries including Algeria, Germany, India, South Africa, Switzerland, Bulgaria, Lebanon, Bosnia & Herzegovina and Serbia competed – some for their first time, while others have attended for many years.
In addition to competing to find the World Mental Calculation Champ of the year, the aim of the event is to share knowledge and methods with the participants who come from all over the world to compete in categories ranging from under 12 years to under 20 years. The competition is a 2-hour written exam, where participants must not write down anything except the answers! All that abaci calculation must be done mentally within time frames.
“They may have spoken many languages there”, says Marlene Mouton Ras, founder of A+Students, a franchise with 600 teaching facilities nationwide, “but had no problem in communicating during the competition, as maths is a universal language. This year’s competition was certainly fierce as the top 3 spots only differed in 43 points each out of 2200 total so Stiaan’s Bronze (3rd) achievement with his personal best record of 2110 points was astounding.”
Joining in congratulating Stiaan Scheepers and Marlene Mouton Ras of A+Students is the CEO and board of the Franchise Association of South Africa (FASA) where A+Students is a member in the Education, Training & Childcare category of franchising. “The Education category in franchising makes up 14% of the franchise pie and is a crucial sector in the development of future generations who will steer the economic growth of our country.” says Fred Makgato, CEO of FASA.
“With the past three years going down in history as the most disruptive years in living memory and with approximately 1.4 billion children worldwide moving from the classroom to on-line education, the challenges not only to traditional schools, teachers and learners but also to those franchise businesses in the childcare, education and training sector, have been momentous. Education franchises were the first to respond to the Covid crisis, adapting their curricula to fill the gaps that lockdown was causing. It continues to be one of the most progressive franchise sectors, both in its business offerings and in its service in education.”
Early maths development crucial to success
Marlene Mouton Ras agrees and points out that it is an undisputed fact that school maths performance in South Africa is abysmal and lags behind the rest of the world. Problems in maths are evident from early grades in primary school and are compounded as learners progress through school. “Young children are not being taught basic mathematics methods – and at school are taught very long, inefficient methods to perform calculations with larger numbers. International research shows that the younger children are exposed to primary maths methods the better equipped they will be to going into the formal school system.”
Early childhood development in maths is crucial to the healthy development of a child’s cognitive development. “Introducing math concepts should start when children are around three years old, where they can gain a basic idea of the practice through language and practice. Number sense or the basics of learning about numbers is the first vital math skill a child must develop before reaching kindergarten.”
A+Students is a Japanese method of education that teaches children as young as 2 ½ (30 months) to solve complex arithmetic problems by playing with educational toys like the Soroban (Abacus) and the A+Play Maths range of educational toys. A+Students is powerful brain development, improves concentration and boosts self-confidence, intelligence and creates a love for Maths.
With a network of 100+ strong & 600+ outlets nationally, A+Students has attracted franchisees from a variety of backgrounds. From teachers to attorneys, all have been attracted to this profitable concept which A+Students has developed whilst helping children develop in Math’s and Mental Arithmetic.
For further information visit A+ Students
For more information on the Mental Calculation World Championships visit World Mental Calculation
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