The adage of no risk, no reward has proven itself true once again, with the incredible story of Jbay Technical College lecturer, Arthur E. Oliver.
An educator by heart and qualification, Oliver boasts a list of academic achievements, and this may just be his greatest yet, for Oliver has written a series of mathematics textbooks that have now been published by Oxford University Press.
His story starts in 2006, when he wrote a letter to then-president Thabo Mbeki, offering his mathematical expertise to any previously disadvantaged school in the country. He was then offered a position at Strelitzia Secondary School in Isipingo. At this school, he noticed that none of the students had textbooks. He then decided to write out the mathematics notes and, with the help of the principal, Nunda Naidoo, they were printed.
The notes culminated in a book of 752 pages and it was a success among the students, resulting in the top nine math students at the school being of his H, G and I classes.
His book was used by many students, as well as by other schools.
Oliver moved to Jeffreys Bay, where he became a maths educator at Jbay Academy and eventually a senior lecturer in civil and mechanical engineering at Jbay Technical College.
During 2021, Oliver inquired of Oxford University Press if they would be interested in publishing his textbook.
“After sending them excerpts from the book, they asked me if I would write the N4, N5 and N6 maths books, for the new 2022 syllabus, for all technical colleges in South Africa,” said Oliver.
“I wrote the six Succeed in Mathematics series books (N4 – N6 students’ books and lecturers’ guides) in nine months (5 000 hours). Oxford presented the books to DHET (Department of Higher Education and Training) for critical review, and obtained a 92% average for the six books.”
This automatically meant unconditional acceptance for use at all institutions in South Africa, presenting the N4 to N6 maths courses. The N4 student maths book sold out within nine weeks of publishing, requiring an immediate reprint.
“I have been credited with ‘Arthur’s Cube’, which appears on page 190 in the N5 students’ book.
“This simplifies the conversion of any type of measuring unit from one type to another,” says Oliver. This is something he is especially proud of, as it is part of his legacy for posterity.
Oliver has also presented webinars of N4, N5 and N6, where they are available on the Oxford website, giving details of the new 2022 maths syllabi.
This has presented another interesting career opportunity, for Oliver will be moving to Somerset West, where he will continue his work of transforming the textbooks into YouTube videos, for presentation on the Oxford University Press YouTube channel.
