Examsta Seeks To Provide Quality Learning Materials
Examsta Seeks To Provide Quality Learning Materials. Examsta is an innovative learning app; it currently offers Life Sciences for Grade 10 to 12. Geography, History and Business Studies will be available soon. Subjects are available in both the SA National and IEB curricula. It was founded by former science and mathematics educator Marie de Wet, Examsta currently provides study material for the South African, CAPS, and IEB high school exams. Currently, the app provides question papers to prepare students in Grade 10, 11, and 12 Life Science. The app is available for users free of charge.
Examsta plans to become a zero-rated platform, meaning that data costs are eliminated, enabling less privileged learners to access the resources provided. In addition, a teacher’s platform will be added to the app to assist learners and monitor their progress.
“I thought ‘why am I wasting so much class time teaching content when kids could just learn content via an app’. My thinking was that class time should be used for deeper learning activities like engaging in debates, doing practicals, and running simulations,” De Wet explained to Venture Burn.
De Wet has managed to self-fund the project by working on other projects for other companies. “I work as a freelance instructional designer and ed-tech consultant. I have made a few vague attempts to get funding but the networking and proposal-writing are so time-consuming that it feels more practical to simply work for money and then funnel it into Examsta. That way I know I definitely have the money and can plan accordingly,” explained De Wet.
De Wet explained that there is a misconception about studying in that it is a “passive process of rereading information, taking notes and hoping to internalise knowledge”. She further explained that testing learners allowed for active learning. “According to researchers, this ‘retrieval practice effect’, helped students achieve marks that were, on average, one grade higher, while also reducing test anxiety,” De Wet added.
Examsta provides students with various quizzes that are based on the South African school syllabus. Each quiz is set to include ten to fifteen multiple-choice questions along with clear explanations and diagrams used to explain answers.
