GAMEPLAY HELPS FARM WORKERS WITH NUMBER SKILLS

Numeracy is a critical skill for farm workers who use numbers virtually every day to work out values, areas and volumes, among others. Hoedspruit Hub’s managing director and training manager, Thias Taute, says farm workers often do not grasp the meaning of instructions from employers who may be talking in terms of metres, tons or litres.

“Most decisions in the agricultural sphere are underpinned by some understanding of numbers. This includes things like, ‘You drive too fast’, ‘You pick too slowly’, or, ‘This weighs too much’. It’s a field that requires the ability to estimate. But to estimate something you need a framework of reference, which is why it is so important to have some understanding of numbers.”

It follows then that it is common for people not to grasp monetary value. “For