Frequently Asked Questions

FutureReady Digital is designed for South African high school learners (Grade 10–12) studying Computer Applications Technology (CAT) or Information Technology (IT). It is also suitable for any learner who wants to build practical Microsoft Office skills for university and workplace readiness. Basic computer familiarity - typing and using a mouse - is all that is needed to start.

The programme runs over six months, one course a month: Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Teams and Digital Foundations. Each course includes lessons, quizzes and a practical project marked by a teacher. Schools can also set their own pace within the platform.

Yes. The programme is built around the practical skills in the CAPS Computer Applications Technology (CAT) curriculum for Grades 10 to 12, and the wider platform supports CAPS SBA, reporting and promotion for Grades 1 to 12.

There is no class size limit on the platform - each school manages its own enrolment. Teachers can have as many learners in their class as they need. The platform scales from a single class of 20 to an entire school district of thousands of learners.

No prior experience is required. Every module starts from the basics and builds progressively. Learners who already know the fundamentals will deepen their skills and be challenged by the more advanced lessons and practical assignments.

Yes. Parents request parent portal access, and once we have verified them they log in to see their child's marks, report cards, attendance and homework. Parents can also message teachers and request meetings through the portal.

FutureReady Digital is a full learning management system (LMS) built specifically for South African schools. It includes: video lessons with progress tracking and resume-from-last-position, interactive quizzes (multiple choice, true/false, fill-in-blank, long answer), assignments with file upload and teacher grading, gamification (badges, points, leaderboards, inter-school challenges), discussion forums, collaborative documents, a mood check-in and wellbeing tracker, a parent portal, and a full teacher analytics dashboard.

No. FutureReady Digital is not zero-rated although you are able to download offline learning material. Learners from data-poor households can study without worrying about data costs. Video streaming may consume data on some networks - we recommend enabling offline mode for video lessons when on a limited connection.

Yes. FutureReady Digital is a Progressive Web App (PWA) with full offline capability. Learners can download lessons, complete quizzes and submit assignments without internet. Everything syncs automatically when they reconnect. The platform can be installed on any Android device from the browser - no app store needed. This means learners in areas with poor connectivity or during load-shedding are never left behind.

Load-shedding is a reality we designed around from day one. Every lesson can be downloaded for offline use before a power cut. Quizzes completed offline are queued and submitted automatically when power and internet are restored. Lesson PDFs can be downloaded for reading without a device. We also schedule platform maintenance outside typical load-shedding windows.

Yes. FutureReady Digital is fully compliant with the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA). The platform, database and uploaded files are hosted in Johannesburg, and only email delivery and the optional AI Study Assistant process limited data abroad, as listed in our Privacy Policy. We have a registered Information Officer, a published Data Processing Agreement (DPA) for schools, and a PAIA manual on file with the Information Regulator. Parental consent is required before processing data of learners under 18. Read our Privacy Policy and Security & Compliance page for full details.

FutureReady Digital is an online platform - learners access it from any device with a browser. There are no fixed class times. Teachers set assignment deadlines and exam windows, but learners can watch lessons and complete quizzes at any time of day. Schools using the platform in computer labs can schedule lab sessions as they see fit.

This depends on the school's timetable. A typical CAT lesson is 2–3 hours per week. The platform supports both structured school-time learning and self-paced study at home. Teachers can see exactly how much time each learner has spent on the platform from the analytics dashboard.

Lessons are always available on-demand. A learner can watch any lesson at any time - including lessons they've already completed. Video lessons remember the learner's position and resume from where they left off. There are no attendance requirements on the platform itself; schools manage their own attendance policies.

Yes. Learners can be added to the platform at any point in the year by their school administrator. All previous lessons remain accessible so a new learner can catch up at their own pace. Their progress is tracked from the first lesson they complete.

Schools pay per learner. The School plan is R60 per learner per year (R5 a month) billed annually, for a minimum of 100 learners. Public schools in quintiles 1 to 3 pay R36 and quintiles 4 and 5 pay R48 per learner per year. Teachers, staff and parents cost nothing extra. Our Pricing page has every plan and a price calculator, and our Procurement page covers formal quotations and supplier documents. You can also email procurement@futurereadydigital.co.za for a quotation.

You can pay an invoice online through PayFast (card or any other method PayFast offers at checkout) or by EFT (bank transfer) using the invoice number as the reference. We also accept purchase orders from schools and government departments, and can issue a pro-forma invoice compatible with a government school's budget processes. We never debit your account automatically.

Yes, we offer a 30-day free trial for new schools. During the trial, teachers and learners have full access to all platform features. No credit card is required to start a trial. Contact our onboarding team at onboarding@futurereadydigital.co.za or fill in the form on our Contact page.

Cancel within 7 days of paying and we refund everything you paid. After that: monthly school and tutor plans can be cancelled at any time with no refund for part of a month; annual plans are refunded for every whole month not yet started; and learner course plans get a 50% refund up to day 30 if less than 20% of the course is completed. Free trials cost nothing. Our Refund Policy and Cancellation Policy have the details.

FutureReady Digital works on any device with a modern web browser - Windows PC, Mac, Chromebook, Android tablet or smartphone. No app store download is required. For the best experience on mobile, learners can install the platform as a PWA (it will prompt automatically). Video lessons and quizzes work on all devices.

The platform teaches Microsoft 365 (the latest version). Learners can access Microsoft 365 free through their school (many schools have Microsoft licensing agreements) or with a valid student email address. We guide learners through the installation in the first module. The web versions of Word, Excel and PowerPoint (via browser) are also sufficient for most exercises.

School administrators can reset any learner's password from the school admin panel under Users → Students. Teachers can direct learners to use the Forgot Password link on the login page. If neither works, email support@futurereadydigital.co.za with the learner's username and school name.

On completing all required lessons, passing all quizzes and submitting all assignments, learners receive a FutureReady Digital Certificate of Completion in PDF format. The certificate lists all modules completed, the learner's name, school and issue date. It can be downloaded from the learner portal and shared directly to LinkedIn or attached to a CV.

The certificate demonstrates verified, practical proficiency in Microsoft Office - the most widely used productivity suite in the workplace. While it is not a formal SAQA-accredited qualification, the underlying skills are universally valued by universities and employers. Learners completing the programme have a measurable advantage in job applications and university assignments that require digital document work.

Certificates already earned and downloaded are permanent - they belong to the learner and are not affected by the school's subscription status. We recommend learners download and save their certificate as soon as it is issued. If a school cancels, learners have 30 days after the cancellation takes effect to download their certificates and data before it is deleted.

Once we receive a signed Data Processing Agreement (DPA) and first payment (or trial activation), your school is live within 24 hours. You can import your teachers and learners from a spreadsheet using our templates, and we run a free 30-minute orientation session via Zoom. If you'd rather we did the setup, guided onboarding (R3 500 once-off, included with School Pro) covers the import, your subjects and SBA, and two 2-hour live training sessions. No IT team or technical setup is needed on the school's side.

Yes. On School Pro, school administrators can show the school's name, colours and logo across the platform. Features such as forums, challenges, mood check-ins and peer review can be switched on or off to suit your school. Teachers can also create their own courses and lessons alongside the standard CAPS-aligned content.

We provide a full set of compliance documents for School Governing Body (SGB) approval, including: a Data Processing Agreement (DPA), Privacy Policy, PAIA Manual, Acceptable Use Policy, B-BBEE certificate, CIPC company registration, tax compliance status and CSD registration. The DPA, Privacy Policy, PAIA Manual and Acceptable Use Policy are on our Legal Documents page. Supplier documents are available on request from procurement@futurereadydigital.co.za.