S4 Integration continued investment in the future of STEM education in the Nelson Mandela Metro.
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GQEBERHA, SOUTH AFRICA - S4 Integration launched their 8th session of the CARE (Coding And Robotics for Educators) at their software division (Wirk) this week, highlighting the tangible impact of its corporate social investment in science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics (STEAM) education. The event brought together industrial automation leaders, key educational technologists, and local educators to showcase how industry-led partnerships are bridge-building between classroom theory and real-world industrial practice.
Opening the proceedings, Ettienne Gerwel Business Development lead from S4 Integration detailed the origins and structured roadmap of the company’s dedicated educational outreach.
"In 2023 or 2024, I was approached by our Managing Director, Andrew White, who wanted us to formalize what we were doing regarding STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) education and expanding the horizons of learners," explained Gerwel. "We formalized it under the S4 Integration STEM Initiative, which contains four distinct components:"
STEM Talks: Introductory school visits where learners gain direct exposure to engineering professions and ask industry specialists direct questions.
Career Days: Immersive site visits to S4 Integration’s manufacturing facilities, allowing interested learners to observe production lines and engage directly with practicing engineers.
Skills Enablement via CARE: The Coding and Robotics for Educators (CARE) initiative, designed to equip teachers with the pedagogical tools necessary to integrate coding into classroom instruction.
Hardware Provisioning: Direct support providing local schools with physical hardware, enabling learners to apply their theoretical knowledge in practical scenarios.
To date, over 70 talks have been held at various schools in the Metro, with more than 200 educators attending the CARE course over the last three years.
Educational technologist Dr. Ron Beyers, founder of Young Engineers and creator of the CARE concept, outlined the conceptual evolution driving the initiative. Dr. Beyers emphasized that traditional STEM frameworks must expand to meet modern industrial needs.
"STEM identifies Science, Technology, Engineering, and Maths, we're missing Art, so we have to include STEAM," noted Dr. Beyers. He then continued to talking about I-STEAM which is Innovation in Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Maths. If we depart from the point of view of innovation, we achieve a completely different outcome, especially in the engineering sector where innovation skills must come to the fore to solve problems."
S4 Integration continued investment in the future of STEM education in the Nelson Mandela Metro.
Dr. Beyers highlighted Pearson High School as a premier hub model, where learners actively teach other learners and educators. He advocated shifting the national schooling paradigm from basic training to true education, urging regional expansion. "It’s about being able to use coding and robotics across any subject ‘transdisciplinary education’. We want to take projects, kids, teachers, and let them loose to bring real-world context into the classroom." said Beyers.
Joining the panel, Dr. Marcus Duveskog of Contextualized Learning Solutions, a non-profit organization co-directed with Dr. Beyers shared his international perspective on bridging technical knowledge with youth development.
"Coding and robotics link to all other subjects, whether it's maths, chemistry, or physics, there is always a component of coding as the world evolves," said Dr. Marcus Duveskog "It's very interesting to be at places such as S4 Integration, where you have the immediate industrial aspect. Learners can see the actual reason why they learn this, demonstrating that this can be a very viable profession down the line." Dr. Marcus Duveskog emphasized that visiting industrial environments allows educators and students to observe direct parallels between classroom models.
Attending educators from local community schools praised the initiative for changing classroom dynamics and expanding access to modern learning tools. "Our schools are in communities where learners don't always have access to these great technological gadgets," shared Mr Meruwyn Williams from ASTRA Primary school. "STEM is a great way to introduce new concepts because learners actually learn through playing and exploring. Instead of the old way of teaching to assess, where something is strictly right or wrong, it produces creative thinkers and takes away the stigma that we 'can't' just because we don't have all the equipment."
Samantha Van Heerden from ASTRA Primary school emphasized the holistic benefits of a transdisciplinary approach: "It shows learners that science isn't just confined to science, science is maths, science is arts, arts is maths. You don't have to be the 'smartest smarty in the box'; you can be the creative one who likes something else, and when you combine it, it becomes something impactful through creative problem-solving."
Through the continued roll-out of the CARE program and hardware donations, S4 Integration and its educational partners aim to replicate this collaborative model across the Eastern Cape and Western Cape regions.
About S4 INTEGRATION
S4 Integration, headquartered in Gqeberha, South Africa, is a distinguished service-oriented company established in 1996, renowned for delivering quality turnkey automation solutions across various industries. Backed by a team of highly skilled engineers and IT experts committed to innovation and boasting extensive experience acquired locally and internationally, S4 provides unparalleled end-to-end industrial automation and machine-building solutions tailored to meet the unique requirements of our clients.