The Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) is calling for catalyst teachers to volunteer as mentors to participating high school teams in the bourse’s Investment Challenge.
A catalyst teacher plays the role of supporting and motivating the students. This programme runs from March to September and is designed to introduce pupils to the basics of investing on the JSE.
The pupils will participate as teams in this competition and will be given R1 million in virtual funds to invest in various portfolios, with the aim of outperforming the portfolios of other participating students.
CSI Officer at the JSE, Ralph Speirs, said several learners who participate in the annual competition are typically from schools in disadvantaged communities, and the purpose of the programme is to bring financial literacy to these areas.
“We call upon unemployed graduates to become catalyst teachers or mentors, to guide learners in the programme; ideal candidates should be unemployed graduates, who have a passion for investments,” said Speirs.
Speirs said suitable candidates will also benefit from acquiring new skills, as they will first undergo a training course with the JSE to become catalyst teachers, with those who succeed receiving a stipend for the duration of the challenge.
“As the continent’s biggest stock exchange and a responsible corporate citizen, the JSE would also like to play an active role in creating a financially literate society.
“What better way to achieve this than to allow South African youth to gain real life skills in investing and trading on the stock exchange while participating in an exciting game with great prizes up for grabs?”
According to Speirs, through the challenge, the stock exchange also aims to demystify its workings and grant participants an opportunity to immerse themselves in the world of investment and learn how the stock market works.
“Aside from just providing mentorship to participating learners, this is truly an opportunity to do something of national importance that can have a lasting impact on communities that need it most,” he said.
The challenge is open to all South African high schools and higher learning institutions.
Additionally, the JSE is calling for students from tertiary institutions to become ambassadors on campuses in order to drive registrations and attract other students to participate in the challenge.
Graduates who are keen on being catalyst teachers can send an application to [email protected] and students that want to be campus ambassadors can send an application to [email protected] by April 30, 2022.
BUSINESS REPORT ONLINE