The Challenge
Dr Steve Balaka Opiyo is a lecturer and a postdoctoral research fellow at North-West University. Both roles draw on the same limited hours.
In his third-year Environmental Sciences course, students learn at different paces and in different ways. In a larger class, individual attention is limited, and some students arrive disengaged. Steve wanted his teaching to feel relevant and responsive, and to build skills students will use after university, while still meeting the curriculum.
How Steve Works with Mindjoy
Steve built step-by-step pathways so students could work through the material at their own pace. For each of the course's three major assignments, he built a tutor on his own content, and he refines it each year from student feedback and updated material. Because he starts from last year's version, improving a tutor takes little time.
The tutors help students work through complex assignments without the pressure of asking in front of the class. That matters most for quieter students, who might not ask at all.
Steve also checks Insights every day. Before, following every student's progress daily was not practical. Now he can see who is struggling and offer support early.
The Impact
Steve spends less time preparing content and checking progress, and more time with the students who need him. With routine explanations handled by the tutors, he has more time for research and course development.
Students became more engaged. Assignments were better written and better structured, and absenteeism dropped. Word spread: the next semester, more students signed up for the course.
For Steve, Mindjoy has made a demanding double role more sustainable.
