Meet The Team
Deon van Wyk
I obtained my Doctorate in Psychology at the University of Stellenbosch, where I also lectured for a number of years. In 1979 I accepted a position at the Institute for Child and Adult Guidance at the Rand Afrikaans University (RAU), now the University of Johannesburg, and later as Professor at the Department of Psychology, with one of my areas of specialisation being Child Psychology.
My research and clinical experience proved beyond doubt that the best outcome is achieved when combining counselling children on proper learning attitudes and skills with instructing parents on how to coach and support their children in the mastering of these skills. All of this resulted in a book titled Study without Stress, first published in 1988 with a revised and updated edition printed and E-published in 2015.
With the launch of StudySmart, I emphatically stressed the following: “We all see the same sky, but not the same horizons. My sincere and humble wish is that the StudySmart Courses, will result in many children widening their horizons and living their dreams”.
Jena Raubenheimer
One of my core responsibilities when employed at the Student Counselling Bureau’s of the University of Stellenbosch and the University of Johannesburg, was to assist students in mastering proper study skills. From my extensive clinical experience over a number of years, I realised that the importance of proper reading skills with regard to academic performance, is hugely underestimated. The outcome of this was a doctoral thesis, based on 10 years of laboratory research, with the title The Design of Reading Development Strategies.
As Professor at the Department of Psychology at the University of Johannesburg, I specialised in Developmental Psychology, and authored several publications and regularly read academic papers at Conferences in South Africa and overseas. As founder member of StudySmart, I always put huge emphasis on the development of inquisitive minds, a positive outlook on life and the importance of developing one’s own unique talents.
Colin Goldridge
I am the IT specialist. My interest in electronics come a very long way, long before the term “personal computer” became a household name. With my keen interest, extensive experience acquired from an early age and inquisitive mind I obtained my Electrical Engineering qualification and spent the first 15 years of my professional career as a Systems Engineer in the broadcast and video post-production industries.
I have more than 20 year’s experience in the Media and IT sectors as Systems Specialist and Software Engineer. I am blessed with extraordinary software development skills, which equipped me to build solutions for the many challenges found in all disciplines of a broad range of industries. In this period I mastered the C programming language and developed extensive IT solutions, transitioning into full-time Software Engineering. On the rare occasions I have some spare time at hand, you will find me programming some micro controller or catching up on my other passion, the world of aviation.
