Pitlochry Primary’s coding team claim victory in national tournament

Pitlochry Primary School’s coding team has claimed victory as the overall champions of the prestigious Mandela Unplugged Coding Tournament.

The team of Grade 7 pupils from the Westville North school, who used the Rangers and Tanks coding games powered by Tangible Africa, emerged as the winners in all categories, defeating 20 teams from the Kranskloof Circuit at the regional tournament.

Following their regional success, the team advanced to the provincial tournament, where Tangible Africa intensified the challenge. Competing against 165 pupils from both primary and secondary schools, the team used the innovative Du Toit Agri Juicy Gems App.

KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) was notably the first and only province to use the app in a competitive coding environment.

Out of 28 competing sites, Pitlochry Primary School rose to the top, winning the provincial tournament and proudly representing KZN at the national tournament.

The national tournament, held virtually in September, featured 20 unseen coding levels that had to be completed within 60 minutes.

Teams were judged based on the number of levels completed, the number of attempts, and the total time taken to finish the tasks. Pitlochry’s coding team impressively completed all 20 levels in a remarkable 14 minutes and 46 seconds, securing first place in the Junior Level as well as the overall championship.

The School Governing Body, principal, and staff extended their congratulations to the winning team, which includes Shay Hardavnarain, Amiran Pillay, Caleb Munsamy, Adhir Sarawan, and Shuver Sadapal, along with their dedicated coaches and team manager.

Principal Dhanabalan Padayachee emphasised the role of innovative curriculum planning and implementation in the team’s success, saying.

“We wish Team Pitlochry all the best as they progress to represent South Africa in the international tournament. The future is bright as these learners ‘STEAM’ ahead in the Fourth Industrial Revolution.”

Team Pitlochry is now preparing for the international tournament, set to take place in December.