DURBAN - DESPITE budget cuts, Covid-19 and other challenges, the provincial Department of Education said it was expecting a matric pass rate of more than 80%.
Speaking to the Daily News on Sunday after holding a prayer with matric pupils and teachers in KwaMashu, the acting head of the department Dr Barney Mthembu said it was envisaged the rate would return to the 81% glory of 2019, pre-Covid-19.
Mthembu said there was hope that this could achieved as there had been an improvement in the trial results.
The province scored 77% last year, which was a drop from the previous year. Discussing the readiness of schools on Friday, Education MEC Kwazi Mshengu said it was all systems go for the start of the matric exams on Wednesday.
“The schools’ closure, alternating of classes and all other challenges that came as a result of Covid-19, meant that as a department we needed to do things differently and pull out all stops to ensure that the Class of 2021 had a fighting chance in life,” Mshengu said.
“As if the difficulties visited on us by Covid-19 were not enough, the civil unrest that we experienced as a country also did not help the situation, but despite all that, we are here today to report to the nation that the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Education is ready for the 2021 National Senior Certificate examinations.”
He said interventions by the department would ensure that despite the difficulties, pupils were well equipped and well prepared for the exams.
Further, he said that earlier this year the department had finalised and started to implement the academic improvement plan focusing on all grades including matric.
The MEC said the province would administer examinations that would be written by a total of 201 107 full-time and part-time candidates, which was the largest figure in six years. There would be 178 262 full-time candidates and 22 845 part-time candidates sitting for the exams.
Mshengu said there were 1 702 writing centres for full-time candidates and 75 for part-time candidates, adding the province had 6 704 exam rooms, 6 022 invigilators, 13 nodal points and 102 distribution points.
The province had a comprehensive plan in place to manage all risks including load shedding.
Daily News