Marks for wrong reason could be damaging in the long run

Covid has disrupted our lives for almost two years – and nowhere has the impact been more visible than in our education system, as pupils have been forced to drastically cut the time they spend at school.

Distance learning has not been a viable option for many and the loss of face-to-face teaching time will have affected schoolgoers at all levels. So, perhaps it was understandable that the education authorities assessing the marks in the government’s National Senior Certificate exams would want to give matriculants some leeway.

However, we have to seriously question why it was felt necessary to adjust upwards the marks in 42% of the subjects presented in the 2021 matric exams. There will be seemingly plausible educational reasons for doing so, especially in the time of Covid.

But, one cannot escape the nagging worry that this massaging of marks is about more than being lenient to pupils who have had their learning disrupted. Could it be about making the education authorities look good – look better than they are in reality? The rate of upward mark adjustment by government is twice that of the Independent Examinations Board.

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Adjustment directly influences our matric pass rate, making it look good, creating the impression that all is well with our government schooling, yet, every year, independent experts say our schooling is not up to scratch for the majority of our pupils.

Already, the pass marks at matric are shown to be not reflective of ability – at least judging by the fact that many universities have to conduct bridging classes for matriculants in the first year and even later… and by the fact that many university students fail to get their degrees.

Education needs a long and hard look. Massaging marks so we can pat ourselves on the back is damaging in the long run.