inBUSINESS Issue 12

already legendary when she entered the
gates of the missionary institution at the
beginning of 2012.
St. Joseph’s being renowned for a
type of discipline where the concept of
the student as a disciple of his or her
teacher is considered fundamental to
learning, Tshabadira must have found
the environment enriching, thus giving
renewed impetus to her quest of enhancing
learners’ absorption of education. At the
age of 47 three years later, she opted for
early retirement so as to better focus on
bringing her idea to fruition.
But she was still full of verve and vigour,
and so she contracted with the Botswana
University of Agriculture and Natural
Resources (BUAN) to take international
students for English during 2016. “I have
always been passionate about teaching and
obtaining good results,” she says. “That
is why I have always used teaching aids
because instruction becomes interactive,
the students creative; and there is dialogue
with the teacher.”
While at ‘St. Joe’ - as the Catholic school
is affectionately referred to, especially by
its older alma mater who always assert
that it is an “institution of learning” rather
than a mere school - her House almost
always emerged the best in activities both
academic and extra-curricular. And it just
so happened that it was the Cheetah House,
named after the fastest land animal that can
reach speeds of up to 120km/h and a crafty
creature that can stalk its prey to within
100m.
But inspite of her school’s superior pass
rate, Tshabadira was always troubled by the
progressive decline in the performance of
students countrywide. “I took a critical look
at the challenges faced by students today
and noted their short attention span,” she
explains.
“It was obvious that
fun was the critical
element that was
missing, especially in
revision. The result, and
hopefully the answer, is
Edrevo. The game aims
at developing a learner’s
ease of absorption and
independence.”
Indeed, convenience was never so real,
innovative and home-grown in so far as
education in Botswana is concerned. The
machine comes packed with material to
prepare students for the entire gamut of
PSLE, JCE and BGCSE.
Early in 2016, Tshabadira flew to China
to make copies of the board game, spending
P25 000 from her own pocket to seal
the deal. The next step is now to mount
countrywide student competitions using
the Edrevo board game. She is collaborating
with another innovative educationist,
Mphoentle Mathodi, whose mission is
“to help learners become independent by
relying on their own strengths, skills and
abilities (see inBusiness March 2017).”
These women pack a punch when it
comes to matters educational and obtaining
good grades for students. By agreement,
Tshabadira’s company, Speed Series
Education Avenue, extends units of Edrevo
to Mathodi’s company, Teenshop Services,
that runs coaching clinics for students
countrywide.
Finkie’s funky creation has already won
her the 2016 WIBA Innovator of the Year
award after the innovator took 1st prize
at the 2015 Women’s Expo. In the same
year, Tshabadira gained much-coveted
exposition when Edrevo was put on display
during an exhibition at the French Embassy
on Bastille Day (July 14) in Gaborone, one
of only two products to make the selection
for the prestigious occasion.
Before this year is out, the two women
will have a presence on the World
Wide Web by means of an app for the
convenience of on-line learners. Tshabadira
has a sense of charity too, donating 24
groovy Edrevos to (Lobatse) Hill School
Primary.
About Edrevo
Edrevo, which is short for Education
Revolution, is an educational board
game with a wide range of subjects
from Primary School Leaving
Examination (PSLE) to Junior
Examinations Certificate (JEC)
and Botswana General Certificate
of Secondary Education (BGCSE).
The idea is to improve the academic
performance of learners by means of
studying in a fun filled way. It has both
structured and multiple questions.
Basic instructions
The players take turns and give
answers to questions on cards. Then
the player moves his or her pawn
along a lane. The number of spaces
to be moved is written at the bottom
corner of the cards. This number is
determined by the level of difficulty
of the question. Like most games, the
first player to reach the end of the
track is the winner. If a player fails to
give the correct answer, the question
is passed on to the next player. If the
player gets the answer right, it is the
next player’s turn. Thus no one can
play twice. Should a player announce
the correct answer out of turn, the
player with the card is entitled to
move his/her pawn over the stipulated
number of spaces. It is important for
players to sit in their order of play. The
same thing applies to their pawns; the
person who plays first should have his/
her pawn in the first lane.
www.inbusiness.co.bw | Issue 12 | 2017 27