It is official; the best physical science teacher in the country is right here in Stellenbosch and can be found in a classroom at Rhenish Girls’ High School.
Lana Schreuder was named best physical-science teacher by the national Department of Basic Education (DBE) for “leading with passion and purpose” at the 2025 National Teaching Awards.
Knowing that science can often be a daunting subject for learners, she believes it is important to maintain a balance between working hard and having fun in class.
“I have an absolute passion for teaching physical sciences, and I just love seeing that passion develop and evolve among my learners,” Schreuder relates.
“They often start out a little anxious about the subject, and it definitely is a challenging subject, but I’m fuelled by those ‘light-bulb’ moments when you can see a learner grasp something for the first time.”
INNATE SCIENCE PASSION
Schreuder had her sights set on being a science teacher since her own days at school. “My dad was also a science teacher many years ago, and I’m sure that had an influence on me. I had a wonderful physical-sciences teacher when I was at school, and I knew at school already that I wanted to be a science teacher.”
Fresh out of university and armed with a BSc degree in mathematical sciences and a teaching qualification, she started her career at De Kuilen High School in Kuils River.
There she found an “exceptional” mentor in Gerhard Roux, who also taught physical science. “I still remember going to his office almost every morning to ask if I understood something correctly or whether my lesson plan was the best way to teach a topic to my learners.”
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According to the provincial education department, it was Schreuder’s 21st-century approach to teaching, grounded in engagement, exploring, explaining, elaborating and evaluation, making the particular discipline comprehensible and meaningful to learners.
“Showing them the science through experiments, simulations or videos, and helping them discover how the theory we learn in class is applicable to every-day situations or in industry, helps them stay engaged and interested.”
AN ELEMENT OF FUN
Schreuder has been teaching for 18 years, three of which were spent in England. She joined Rhenish in 2014 and has since completed a master’s in education at Stellenbosch University.
In her thesis, she focused on the anxiety that often goes with teaching science. The thesis title was “Physical Sciences teachers’ awareness of science anxiety among Physical Science learners”, which identified that more and more learners were showing anxiety towards the subject.
“I wanted to learn from my learners and then from other science teachers what we can do to support learners with academic anxiety and strategies we can implement in our classrooms to help reduce this,” Schreuder explains.
“I believe the knowledge I gained from this study is helping me to make Physical Sciences more enjoyable to learners.”
Sectors involving science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) are often still male-dominated fields, but Schreuder is happy to take on the challenge of turning this tide.
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SCIENCE IS FOR ALL
“My learners see me – a woman in science – every day, and they see my passion, resilience and hard work,” she points out.
“It is important to be an example to them. In addition, my learners get the opportunity to engage in many science-related activities outside the classroom, through national science essay competitions, science olympiads, science expos, science master classes, and visits to and from tertiary institutions.
“Exposure to activities such as these help them become more confident in the STEM fields. I believe teaching at a girls’ school gives me the opportunity to empower women in science.”
The Stellenbosch-based teacher is humbled and honoured by the award, believing that she represents all teachers who are passionate about teaching physical sciences and striving to inspire their learners to excel in their own way.
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