New principal takes school from 34% to 70% pass
A year ago Charles Mathonsi Secondary School between Dan village and Mokgolobotho was one of the worst-performing schools in the country.
The class of 2020 had produced a 34.5% pass rate, leaving newly appointed principal Rebotile Lesele, a challenge to turn the school around. Lesele told the Herald that when she accepted the job, she was ready for a challenge and she was determined to do everything in her power to make the school functional again. To everyone’s relief, she managed to produce an overall 70.9% pass rate, an improvement of almost 40% from the 34% in 2020. Mathematics, which was the second-lowest mark in the whole country at 8.3% in the previous year, achieved a pass rate of 64.3% in 2021. Physical Science, which had a pass rate of 25%, skyrocketed to 78.6% in 2021.
Maths and science teachers, Matimba Mthembi and Gerfort Malatji praised Lesele for her leadership skills. Lesele said that the past year was not an easy one, because she had to deal with ill-disciplined learners. Other problems she encountered were teenage pregnancy, substance abuse, no designated study times, and lack of cooperation from the parents.
However, these obstacles did not deter the principal, she introduced study classes and also a reward system. “I looked for sponsors who would reward the best learners after the trial exams. “The best learners received R8000 cash prize money. That inspired the other learners to pull up their socks.
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“Some of our best-performing students got donors, who paid for their first year of tuition at university. “I’m glad that in the end the learners, parents, the school governing body (SGB) and the educators worked together, this is how we achieved these great results,” she said.
Last year in April, Minister of Education, Angie Motshekga, visited the school to ascertain why it was performing poorly. Lesele promised the minister that things will change, a promise that she has fulfilled. On Friday, January 28, she was awarded her best-performing teachers with prize money.
Ntsako Mushwana, who obtained a bachelor’s pass and is studying Law at the University of Johannesburg, says she will always be indebted to her principal’s encouragement. “I managed to attain an average of 76%, which I never obtained before. “I gave the principal my phone during the exams so that I could focus on my studies,” she concluded.
