Motshekga slams critics of ‘30% passes’: ‘They are almost at 0%’

The minister of basic education has lauded the education system for delivering improved results from government schools.

Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga. Picture: GCIS

In announcing the results of the matric class of 2019, Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga said her department had been “haunted” by criticism that some pupils were allowed to pass with 30%, which she said has always been a misunderstanding.

Thirty percent is not the pass mark for the National Senior Certificate, but some pupils may get an endorsed pass overall, even if they fail one or more of their subjects with 30% or more, but still get an overall passing percentage of 40% or more. This misunderstanding is something often repeated by critics of both government and the education system in general.

Mam Angie having a go at you folks that talk about 30% 💀

— Mabushi Mawela (@Mr_Mawela) January 7, 2020

Motshekga said there were only 105 of such endorsed passes, which she said amounted to something barely worth mentioning, 0.02%. “Nearly 65% of our learners passed with bachelors and diploma access and are eligible to enter institutions of higher learning.” This was more than 337,000 pupils. About 15% would be able to go to TVET colleges.

Overall, the class of 2019 saw an increase in passes countrywide, with the national rate at 81.3%, the highest yet since the dawn of democracy, an achievement Motshekga lauded while calling for further improvements.

The top-performing provinces for passes were the Free State at 88.4% and Gauteng at 87.2%, with all provinces getting more than 70%. The Eastern Cape avoided being the worst, tying with Northern Cape, with that dubious honour going to Limpopo.

The minister said that the fact that 96% of parents sent their children to government schools was an expression of trust in the system but also a challenge to deliver quality education.

MATRIC 2019 PASS RATE AS PER PROVINCE:
.
Free State = 88,4%
Gauteng = 87,2%
North West = 86,8%
Western Cape = 82,3
KwaZulu-Natal = 81,3
Mpumalanga = 80,3
Northern Cape = 76,5
Eastern Cape = 76,5
Limpopo = 73,2

— Yanga Vandal Makaluza (@YangaMiya) January 7, 2020

Gauteng had the three leading districts, with over 90% each and also had the most bachelor passes, at about 40%, while the Western Cape had the most distinctions.

Nearly 800,000 pupils sat for the exams with the majority of them girls.

As we wait for #MatricResults2019 it's important to remember that every cohort has about 1-million kids in it. There were only 504,000 (52% of) learners writing Matric 2019. Minister acknowledged this to parliament in Nov 2019: https://t.co/1dH8jw5blK pic.twitter.com/0oBAIqxVdN

— Nic Spaull (@NicSpaull) January 7, 2020

The leading district in the Eastern Cape was Nelson Mandela Bay with 81.4%. In the Free State, the leading district was Fezile Dabi with 90.3%.

In Gauteng, it was Tshwane South with 93.3%. In KwaZulu Natal, it was UGU with 86.3%, while in Limpopo Vhembe East got 81.5%.

In Mpumalanga, the leading district was Ehlanzeni with 84.6%; the Northern Cape was Namaqua with 81.5%; in North West it was Bojanala with 89.6% and in the Western Cape, it was Metropole North with 86.3%.