Real matric pass figure less than 45% – AfriForum
“Until these problems have been addressed, the yearly celebration of matric pass rates is nothing more than a political blind eye to the detriment of the future of this country and its people,” Bailey said.
The real pass figure for matric is less than 45%, according to AfriForum.
AfriForum expressed concern about the official pass figure of 75, 8% in 2014 as opposed to 78, 2% in 2013. They argue, if one considered the number of pupils who enrolled in 2003 for grade 1 and successfully completed their matric in 2014, the real pass figure is less than 45%.
According to Alana Bailey, deputy executive head of AfriForum, the reports of the education department shows that in 2003 there were 1 187 961 pupils in grade 1. According to statistics presented by Umalusi and the minister of basic education, only some 689 625 pupils wrote matric in 2014. This is about 58% of the original group of which 75, 8% successfully wrote matric. This means the real pass figure of the 2003 grade 1 group was less than 45%, in contrast to the officially declared 75,8%.
It is an urgent necessity that the department should accept accountability and show leadership to address problems such as mother tongue education, unworkable curriculum options, the delivering of handbooks, disfunctionality at schools, inadequate training opportunities for teachers and disciplinary problems.
According to Bailey, the presentation of matric results sent out the wrong message, also seen against the backdrop of the operational chief of the SABC, Hlaudi Motsoeneng, who is touting the worth of a matric certificate, while he himself is under a cloud of misinformation about his own matric success. The minister also laughed about any reference to the handbook crisis of 2012, which she conveniently forgot to mention, and which also occurred in 2013 and to a lesser extent in 2014.
According to the latest report of Statistics South Africa, more than 51% of South Africans between the ages of 15 and 24 are unemployed. This proves that the department of basic education is faced with a great challenge to deliver employable young people to the labour market.
“Until these problems have been addressed, the yearly celebration of matric pass rates is nothing more than a political blind eye to the detriment of the future of this country and its people,” Bailey said.
For free breaking and community news, visit Rekord’s websites:
Like our Facebook page and follow us on Twitter.
Read: Gauteng matric exams running smoothly
Centurion teacher dies while marking
Get your 2014 matric results here
