THE MEC for Education in Gauteng, Panyaza Lesufi, expresses sincere gratitude to all officials who oversaw the successful 2018 National Senior Certificate (NSC) examination process.
Heartfelt congratulations to all the learners, educators and staff for a job well done during the exams. The department applauds all educators for the hard work they have put in during the year.
November 28 marks the last day of the NSC examinations, which concludes with agricultural management practices at 9am and design at 2pm.
For the first time in many years, the department experienced one major irregularity, wherein the principal of Mpontsheng Secondary School in Katlehong walked into a matric exam centre and allegedly gave learners the answers to Geography Paper 1. The incident was reported to Umalusi and the principal was immediately removed as an invigilator and subsequently placed on precautionary transfer to the district office. The principal is facing a disciplinary process, the outcome of which will be communicated in due course.
The department supports Umalusi’s decision that learners in the implicated school should rewrite their Geography Ppaper 1 so the integrity of the exam is not compromised. The affected learners will rewrite their rescheduled paper on November 29.
This year, more than 107 258 full-time candidates and 43 061 part-time candidates across Gauteng successfully commenced their main NSC examination on October 22. This is a slight increase of 229 candidates as compared to the number of candidates in 2017.
Learners wrote a total of 147 papers in approximately 1 004 centres across 15 Gauteng districts.
All the marking centres are geared and ready to commence on December 1 and will be concluded by December 15. The department wishes all 9 509 appointed markers well during this period of marking.
Gauteng did everything possible to ensure learners are given the best possible advantage to do well in these examinations. These include the Secondary School Improvement Programme (SSIP), the Matric Revision Camps and subject-specific interventions throughout the year.
“This is to encourage learners to actively seek and participate in skills development programmes such as job shadowing, internships, and more rather than engaging in unsafe sex and alcohol binges. We urge learners to stay away from parties that may harm their careers forever,” said Lesufi.
The Minister of Basic Education, Angie Motshekga, will release the 2018 NSC examination results on the evening of January 3. However, candidates will be able to access their results from January 4 at their school or exam centres.
The department understands that post-exam anxiety and stress is likely to set in among some learners and hereby reminds learners in distress to contact Childline on their toll-free numbers (0800 055 555 or 011 645 2000) during working hours for counselling assistance. Parents and members of the community are also urged to use these contact details for learner support.
“We wish all our learners the very best of luck and success. With the hard work they have put in we trust they will make themselves, their families and the department very proud,” said Lesufi.
