Johannesburg - Cope on Tuesday described the quality of South African school education as mediocre following the announcement of the 2013 matric pass rate by Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga.
“We have leaders who are way out of their depth and have absolutely no qualms about celebrating mediocrity,” said Congress of the People leader Mosiuoa Lekota in a statement.
Many of the matric certificates were not worth the paper they were written on.
“Many of the students who have supposedly passed matric will battle to find employment or gain admission to a tertiary institution.”
Lekota said the high level of youth unemployment was a by-product of a dismal education system.
“South Africa's productivity has steadily declined in the past few years and this is directly attributable to the quality of education that we are offering to our children.”
He said government should not be trusted with the education of children.
Motshekga announced a 78.2 percent pass rate for the 2013 matric class on Monday.
In 2009, when Motshekga took over as minister, the pass rate was 60.6 percent. It has climbed steadily since then. - Sapa