a perspective on the eastern cape 2013 …commented on. the national senior certificate 2013 (nsc)...
TRANSCRIPT
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A PERSPECTIVE ON THE EASTERN CAPE
2013 MATRIC RESULTSMATRIC RESULTS
T A B L E O F
CONTENTS1. Introduction...................................................................................................................................................2
2. Background....................................................................................................................................................2
3. Statisticalanalysis..........................................................................................................................................2
3.1Overviewoftheresults.............................................................................................................................2
3.2Enrolment................................................................................................................................................5
3.3Subjectperformanceandlevelofachievement........................................................................................6
3.4Candidatesqualifyingforbachelordegrees..............................................................................................7
3.5Passratebygender..................................................................................................................................8
4. Factorspossiblyaffectingresults...................................................................................................................10
4.1Qualityineducation.................................................................................................................................10
4.2Historicalandpoliticalfactors...................................................................................................................11
5. Howcanwerespondtotheseissues?...........................................................................................................11
6. Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................................12
List of Tables
Table1:Passratewithindifferentpercentagecategories,2013...................................................................................4
Table2:Full-timeandpart-timeNSCenrolmentsperprovincein2013.....................................................................5
Table3:Numberand%offull-timelearnerswhowroteandpasstheNSC
examinationin2013......................................................................................................................................6
Table4:EasternCapesubjectperformanceandlevelofachievementin2013..........................................................6
Table5:PercentageandtrendofcandidateswhoqualifiedforBachelorstudies:
2008-2013....................................................................................................................................................8
Table6:OverallachievementandcandidatesqualifyingforBachelorstudiesby
gender,2013..................................................................................................................................................9
Table7:Educationbudget:learnersandperlearnerfundinginheritedbytheEasternCapeDepartmentof
Education1994/1995.....................................................................................................................................10
List of figures
Figure1.Grade12passrate:EasternCapeversusSouthAfrica,2013............................................................................2
Figure2:Grade12passratesbyprovince,2013............................................................................................................3
Figure3:Matricpassratebyarea,2013........................................................................................................................6
Figure4NumberofcandidatesqualifyingforBachelorstudies,2013...........................................................................7
Figure5:NSCexaminationpassratesbygenderintheEasternCape.............................................................................8
Figure6:CandidatesqualifyingforBachelorstudiesbygender,2013.............................................................................9
AnnexureAnnexure1:Grade12passratesbyarea,2013
KEY FINDINGS
Thematricpassrateinthecountryandintheprovincehassignificantlyimproved.IntheEasternCapeitimprovedfrom50.6%in2008to64.9%in2013whileforthecountryasawholeitimprovedfrom62.2%in2008to78.2%in2013.Suchachievementhasnotbeenreachedoverthepastdecade.
Whileacknowledgingthatmatricpassratehasimproved,achievementintheEasternCapehasremainedthelowestinthecountry.
In2013,Malepassrate(68.5%)washigherthanthatofFemale(62.1%).TheperformancegapbetweenMaleandFemalewidenedfrom0.6percentagepointsin2008to6.4percentagepointsin2013.
Thetopfiveeducationdistrictthatperformed70%andaboveintheEasternwere:PortElizabeth,Cradock,EastLondon,Cofimvaba,andMaluti.
In2013,theEasternCapecontributed13.5%oftotalNSCenrolment,12.8%ofallwhowrotetheNSCexamination,and10.0%ofallwhopassedtheNSCexamination.Thesecontributionsareinlinewiththeprovince'sshareof13%ofthenationalpopulation.
Fulltimeenrolmentincreaseby8.4%in2013,anindicationthateffortstoenhanceaccesstoeducationintheEasternCapearebearingfruit.
In2013,3.9%ofschoolsintheEasternCape(8.3%forRSA)performedatexactly100%and24.0%ofschoolsintheEasternCape(49.0%forRSA)performedbetween80%to100%
STEM(Science,Technology,Engineering,andMathematics)isregardedasapriorityareabytheDepartment
ofEducation.However,between2010and2013,therewasadeclineinthenumberofpupilswhowrotemathematics(6.5%)andphysics(7.1%).Shouldthistrendpersist,thetechnicalskillspipelinewillcontinuenottoseeimprovements.
In2013,theEasternCapehad2860learnerswhodropped-outinGrade12(4%drop-outrate,thehighestinthecountry).Therewere25298learnerswhofailed(35.1%failurerate,alsothehighestinthecountry).Thosewhodropped-outandthosewhofailedmakeupatotalof28158potentialrepeaters(37.5%potentialrepetitionrate).Someoftheseyoungpeoplemightgetdiscouragedandaddtothepoolofyouthunemployedandoutoflearninginstitutions.
1
1. IntroductionThisreportprovidesaperspectiveontheEasternCape2013Matricresults.Itcapturestheperformanceofthe72138
candidateswhowrotetheNationalSeniorCertificateaftertwelveyearsofschooling.Thereportdrawsdatafromthe
NationalSeniorCertificate(NSC).ToamplifycertainresultsandseekexplanationswealsodrawontheAnnualNational
Assessments(ANA).TheresultshowsthatalthoughtheEasternCapehasimprovedtheGrade12passratefrom50.6%in
2008to64.9%in2013,itsachievementremainsthelowestinthecountry.Thereportpresentsastatisticaloverviewofthe
2013Matricresults;explorefactorspossiblyaffectingtheresultsandsuggestsaresponsetoissuesaffectingeducation.
2. BackgroundMatric resultsevokemuch fanfareeveryyearas it symbolises the litmustest for thestateof theeducationsystem.
Announcementsabouttheprogressionofpassratesaswellasrelativeperformanceofrespectiveprovincesarealways
commentedon.TheNationalSeniorCertificate2013(NSC)passrateof64.9%fortheEasternCapeand78.2%forSouth
Africaareconsideredsignificantachievements.Thematricresultsalsotendtobringintofocushowthestateperformsas
farasprovidingeducationisconcernedandhowsucheducationenables,ordisables,economicgrowth.
Therelationshipbetweeneducation,trainingandhowbigindustriesaresupportedwithskillsareamongtheissuesthat
thematricresultsmomentraise.Thusmatricresultssymbolisemuchmorethanamereannouncementofwhetherthereis
animprovementinpassrates,itsymbolisesarangeofpolitical,socialandeconomicrelations.Onesetoftheserelations
havebearingonthestateanditsroleinprovidingeducationforeconomicends.Thedatainthisreportshowsthatthe
EasternCapeisperformingwellbelowotherprovinces.ThisreportseekstocontextualisetheEasternCape'sresults.
3. Statistical analysis AccordingtothetechnicalreportoftheDepartmentofEducation(2014)theEasternCapehasproducedthelowestmatric
passrateoverthepastdecade(SeeFigure1).Thisreportoffersastatisticalanalysisandasetofpossiblefactorsto
hopefullydeepenourunderstandingofwhytheEasternCape'smatricresultsfallbehindtheotherprovinces.
3.1 Overview of the results
TheEasternCapewitnessedadecliningmatricpassratein2003-2009,withaturnaroundin2009-2013;givingrisetoa
“V-shape”trend.Between2003and2013,theEasternCapefollowedthenationaltrend,butwasconsistentlybelowthe
nationalaveragebyplusminus10percentagepoints.
Figure 1. Grade 12 pass rate: Eastern Cape versus South Africa, 2013
2
80.0
75.0
70.0
65.0
60.0
55.0
50.0
45.0
40.02003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
EC RSA
78.2
73.3
60.662.2
WeseeinFigure1thatGrade12passratesinthecountryimprovedby16.0percentagepointsfrom62.2%in2008to
78.2%in2013.IntheEasternCape,theGrade12passratealsoimprovedby14.3percentagepointsfrom50.6%in2008to
64.9%in2013.However,ithasremainedlowcomparedtotheaveragepassrateinthecountry.
ClosecorrelationbetweentheEasternCapeandSouthAfrica'sperformancesshowsthatthepoorresultsarenotonlya
provincialproblem,butalsoanationalsystemicissue.
TheperformanceofNSCexaminationpassrateisunequalamongprovinces,apatternwhichismanifestamongschoolsas
well.Figure2showsthatin2013,Grade12passratesrangedfromaslowas64.9%fortheEasternCape,to87%inthree
provinces,namelyGauteng,NorthWest,andFreeState.Itaveragedto78.2%forthecountryasawhole.
Figure 3: Matric pass rate by area, 2013
Figure 2: Grade 12 pass rates by province, 2013
Source: DBE –National Senior Certificate: Technical Report, 2013
3
Port Elizabeth
Cradock
East London
Cofimvaba
Maluti
Uitenhage
Ngobo
Graaff-Reinet
Mthatha
Lady Frere
Queenstown
MT Fletcher
KWT
Grahamstown
Dutywa
Libode
Lusikisiki
Butterworth
MT Frere
Mbizana
Sterspruit
Fort Beaufort
Qumbu
50
53
57
5759
59
59
59
60
61
63
65
6566
67
67
68
68
69
70
71
74
74
73
55 60 65 70 75
78.2
64.9
TheperformanceofNSCexaminationpassrateisnotonlyunequalamongprovincesbutalsoamongvariouseducation
districts.Thefivedistrictsthatperformed70%andabovein2013intheEasternarePortElizabeth,Cradock,EastLondon,
Cofmvaba,andMaluti.ThelowestperformancewasinFortBeaufortandQumbu(SeeFigure3andAnnexure1).
Adifferentpictureemergeswhenwecomparetheperformancebetween2010and2013.Areaswherepassratesimproved
by10percentagepointsandabovebetween2010and2013were:Cofimvaba,Libode,FortBeaufort,KingWilliamTown,
ButterworthandPortElizabeth.Areaswherepassratedeclinedbetween2010and2013were:Qumbu,Graaff-Reinet,
Cradock,andGrahamstown(SeeAnnexure1).Hence,ablanketstatementaboutpoorperformanceinruralareascannotbe
made.
LookingatthematricperformanceinSouthAfrica,theprovinceandtheeducationdistricts,itappearsthattheintra-
provincialdifferencesareaslargeasinter-provincialdisparities.Similarly,asexpected,thetwometrosintheEasternCape
performedverywell.
Table 1: Pass rate within different percentage categories, 2013
Table1showsthatin2013,almostathird(31.3%)ofschoolsintheEasternCapescoredbetween60%and79.9%pass
rates.Aquarter(24.0%)ofschoolsintheprovincescoredbetween80%and100%passrates.Intheprovince,3.9%of
schoolsscoreaexactly100%.Overall,almosthalf(49.0%)ofschoolsinthecountryasawholescorebetween80%and
100%.
Numberofschools
Exactly0%
Exactly100%
0to19.9%
20to39.9%
40to59.9%
60to79.9%
80to100%
EasternCape 918 0.3 3.9 3.2 13.2 28.4 31.3 24.0FreeState 332 0,0 15.1 0,0 0.3 2.4 19.0 78.3Gauteng 806 0.1 15.1 0.1 0,0 4.3 22.2 72.5KwaZulu-Natal 1723 0.1 6.7 1.3 5.5 15.8 30.8 46.6Limpopo 1413 0.1 3.6 1.8 6.7 19.5 37.4 34.5Mpumalanga 539 0,0 4.6 0.4 1.9 15.2 35.3 47.3NorthWest 380 0,0 12.6 0,0 0.3 29.9 21.1 75.8NorthernCape 134 0,0 10.4 0,0 2.2 15.7 32.1 50.0WesternCape 431 0.2 20.6 0.2 0.5 5.8 22.5 71.0
TotalRSA 6676 0.1% 8.3% 1.2% 5.0% 14.8% 29.9% 49.0%
Source: DBE –National Senior Certificate: Technical Report, 2013
4
Full-time Part-time Total
DifferenceFull-time2012-2013
Full-timeenrolment growthrate2012-2013
EasternCape 74998 20536 95534 5 799 8.4%
FreeState 28019 3208 31227 3 259 13.2%
Gauteng 99504 41408 140912 8 029 8.8%
KwaZulu-Natal 150154 24888 175042 17 882 13.5%
Limpopo
83594
16993
100587
5
412
6.9%
Mpumalanga
51206
7391
58597
2
217
4.5%
NorthWest
29539
3604
33143
1
964
7.1%
NorthernCape
10693
1760
12453
1
412
15.2%
WesternCape
48783
10858
59641
3
181
7.0%
TotalforRSA
576490
130646
707136
49155
9.3%
Table 2: Full-time and part-time NSC enrolments per province in 2013
Source: DBE –National Senior Certificate: Technical Report, 2013
3.2 Enrolment
AccordingtotheDepartmentofBasicEducation,the2013NationalSeniorCertificateexaminationhasbeenthelargest
since 2008with a total enrolment of 707 136,which includes 576 490 full-time candidates and 130 646 part-time
candidates.TheEasternCapefull-timeandpart-timeNSCenrolmentsaccountfor13.5%oftotalenrolmentinSouth
Africa.Thisenrolmentcontribution(13.5%)mirrorstheEasternCapepopulation'scontribution(13.0%)toSouthAfrica's
totalpopulation.
Table2showsthatbetween2012and2013,thefull-timeNSCenrolmentgrewby49155learnersor9.3%inSouthAfrica
andby5799learnersor8.4%intheEasternCape.Thisgrowthisanindicationthateffortstoenhanceaccesstoeducation
arebearingfruit.TheincreasedenrolmentinGrade12isaresultofincreasingenrolmentinthelowergrades.Thegrowth
inNSCenrolmentswashighestintheNorthernCape(15.2%)andlowestinMpumalanga(4.5%).
EmergingfromTable3areissuesofdrop-out,failurerateandrepetitionrate.Ofthe74998full-timecandidateswho
enrolledintheEasternCapefortheNSCexaminationin2013(Table2),72138candidateswrotetheexamination(Table3).
Thismakesadifferenceof2860full-timecandidates(4%)whoenrolledfortheNSCbutdidnotwritetheexamination.The
4%differenceintheEasternCape(2.6%forRSA)wasthehighestinthecountry.Thishighdrop-outratehasanimpacton
youthvulnerabilityandreasonsfordrop-outneedsfurtherinvestigation.Itisimportanttoascertainwheretheselearners
whodrop-outgoto.Dotheyaddtothenumberofyouthwhoareunemployedandoutoflearninginstitutions?
Table3showsthattheEasternCapeaccountedfor12.8%ofallwhowrotetheNSCexaminationbutitrepresentedonly
10.0%ofallwhopassedGrade12.Ofthe72138learnerswhowrote,46840learnerspassed(64.9%)and25298learners
failed(35.1%).Thisfailurerateisthehighestinthecountry.Togetpotentialrepetitionrate,werelookatthe74998
learnerswhoenrolledforNSCexaminationagainst the46840 learnerswhopassed.There isadifferenceof28158
potentialrepeaters(37.5%potentialrepetitionrate).).TheDoEdoesnothaveasystemtore-accommodatetherepeaters
withinthepublicschoolingsystem.Theyhavetofindforthemselvesotherlearninginstitutions,whicharenormallyprivate
institutions,wheretheycangetassistancetopreparetore-writeandimprovetheirmatricresults.
ThenumberofcandidateswhoenrolledandthosewhowrotetheNSCexaminationinrelationtohowmanypassedfor
eachprovinceshowsconsistentlythatthousandsoflearnersdonotmatriculateacrossallprovinces.
5
Table 3: Number and % of full-time learners who wrote and pass the NSC examination in 2013
3.3 Subject performance and level of achievement in the Eastern Cape
Foranalyticalpurposes,subjectscanbegroupedinthreecategories,namely:Commerce(Businessstudies,Economics,
Accounting); social sciences (Life science, History, Geography); and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and
Mathematics). Subject performance affects demand and supply of skills. A shortage in engineering skills and poor
performanceinSTEMcouldinalongruncausetheprovincetoimporttheseskillsfromelsewhere,whiletheprovince's
unemploymentrateremainshigh.
Mathematicsandphysicalscience(partofSTEM)arebeingidentifiedbytheDepartmentofBasicEducationaspriority
subjects.However,thesearealsothesubjectswheremostlearners'performanceismediocre.
Table 4 Eastern Cape subject performance and level of achievement in 2013
Between2010and2013,thenumberofpupilswhowrotemathematicsintheEasternCapedroppedby6.5%from38
801in2010to38067in2011andfrom37038in2012to36274in2013.Thosewhopassedmathematicswith40%
andabovefluctuatedbetween21.3%in2010to19.6%in2011andfrom21.9%in2012and26.9%in2013(SeeTable
4).
Similarly,between2010and2013,thenumberofpupilswhowrotephysicalscienceintheEasternCapedroppedby7.1%
from27163in2010to26387in2011andfrom25603in2012to25218in2013.Thosewhopassedmathematicswith
40%andaboveimprovedto23.5%;25.9%;27.0%and29.9%respectivelyin2010,2011,2012and2013.
Pickinguponesubjectineachofthethreeareas(commerce,socialscienceandSTEM),Table6showsthat57.2%ofpupils
whowroteaccounting(commerce)attained30%andabove;81.9%ofpupilswhowrotehistory(socialscience)attained
Learnerswhowrote Learnerswhopass
%Achieved Number %Share Number %Share
EasternCape 72138 12.8 46840 10.0 64.9FreeState 27105 4.8 23689 5.0 87.4Gauteng 97897 17.4 85122 18.1 87.0KwaZulu-Natal 145278 25.8 112403 23.9 77.4Limpopo 89184 14.7 82483 19.0 71.1Mpumalanga 50053 8.9 38836 8.3 77.6NorthWest 29140 5.2 25414 5.4 87.2NorthernCape 10403 1.9 7749 1.6 74.5WesternCape 47615 8.5 40542 8.6 85.1
TOTALRSA 562112 100.0 439779 100.0 78.2
Source: DBE –National Senior Certificate: Technical Report, 2013
Numberoflearnerswho
wrote
Numberoflearnerswho
achieved30%to100%
Percentageoflearnerswho
achieved30%to100%
Numberoflearnerswho
achieved40%to100%
Percentageoflearnerswho
achieved40%to100%
Mathematics 36274 15753 43.4 9564 26.4
PhysicalScience 25218 14061 55.8 7534 29.9 Accounting 18104 10359 57.2 5843 32.3 BusinessStudies 25596 18511 72.3 11590 45.3 Economics 20686 12068 58.3 5823 28.1 Geography 27645 19334 69.9 11088 40.1 History 15667 12825 81.9 9312 59.4 Lifescience 41368 26659 64.4 14870 35.9 MathLiteracy 36520 28557 78.2 17517 48.0
Source: DBE –National Senior Certificate: Technical Report, 2013
6
30%andabove;and43.4%ofpupilswhowrotepuremathematic(STEM)attained30%andabove.
Ifschoolingsystem/performanceisweakinaspecificareas,theskillspipelineinthatareawillbeaffectedanditsimpact
willbefeltontheeconomyasawhole.
3.4 Quantifying number of candidates for bachelor degrees
TheEasternCapegraduated13686bachelordegreecandidatesin2013.ThisismorethanNorthernCape,FreeState,
NorthWestandMpumalanga.EasternCaperanksfifthingraduationofbachelorcandidatescomparedtootherprovinces,
itishoweverthethirdmostpopulousprovince.ButdespitebeingrakedthelastintermsofNSCresults,theEasternCape
continuestomakeasignificantcontributiontothepoolofskilledpeople inSouthAfrica.Theprovinceneedsaskill
retentionstrategythatensureoptimalutilisationofskillsandpreventoutmigrationofyoung,educatedandskilledpeople.
AccordingtotheCensus2011,theEasterCapehadthehighestoutmigrationrate.
AlthoughtheFreeStatehasthehighestpassrateinthecountry(87.4%),itscontributiontothenumberoflearnerswhoare
eligibleforBachelorstudiesissignificantlylowercomparedtotheEasterCape,duetotheprovincebeingsmaller.Ofthose
eligibleforBachelorStudies,theNorthernCapehas2424candidateswhiletheEasternCapehas13686(SeeFigure4).
Figure 4 Number of candidates qualifying for Bachelor studies, 2013
Table5showsthatbetween2008and2013thepercentageoflearnerseligibletofurthertheirstudiesatauniversity
levelincreasedsignificantlyby10.5percentagepointsinSouthAfricaandby4.6percentagepointsintheEastern
Cape.
Putdifferently,ofthe72138candidateswhowrotethe2013NSCexaminationintheEasternCape,13686candidates
or19%qualifiedforfurtherstudiesatuniversity.IntheWesternCape40.9%qualifyforbachelorscomparedto30.6%
forthecountry.Thismeansthatforevery10learnerswhowrotetheexaminationintheEasternCape,only2become
eligibleforuniversityprogramme.InSouthAfrica,3outofevery10learnerswritingtheexamqualifyforuniversity.
Source: DBE –National Senior Certificate: Technical Report, 2013
7
5,0002,424
8,96110,166
12,954
18,781 19,477
38,104
47,202
13,686
10,000
15,000
20,000
25,000
30,000
35,000
40,000
45,000
50,000
NC FS NW MPL EC LMP WP GT KZN
2013 2012 2011 2010
2008%Difference
(2013-2008)
EasternCape 19.0 17.6 15.7 16.0 14.4 4.6
FreeState 33.1 28.6 26.3 21.4 21.0 12.1
Gauteng 38.9 36.2 35.2 33.9 30.5 8.4
KwaZulu-Natal 32.5 27.3 22.4 25.7 18.2 14.0
Limpopo 22.8 19.8 17.6 15.6 12.6 10.2
Mpumalanga 25.9 19.7 18.4 15.8 13.1 12.8
NorthWest
34.9
27.4
28.3
27.7
19.4
15.4
NorthernCape
23.3
23.0
19.9
21.1
20.1
3.2
WesternCape
40.9
36.5
38.1
31.5
33.0
7.9
TOTALRSA
30.6%
26.6%
24.3%
23.5%
20.1
10.5
Table 5: Percentage and trend of candidates who qualified for Bachelor studies: 2008 - 2013
Source: DBE –National Senior Certificate: Technical Report, 2013
3.5 Pass rate by Gender
IntheEasternCape,theGrade12passrateperformanceisunequalbetweenmalesandfemales.
Figure 5: NSC examination pass rates by gender in the Eastern Cape
Thegapbetweenmaleandfemaleperformanceislargerin2013comparedtowhatitwasin2008.InSouthAfrica
(2013),itwashigherformales(80.0%)comparedtofemales(76.8%).IntheEasternCape,itwas68.5%formalesand
62.1%forfemales(SeeFigure5).Theseresultsareincontrasttothesignificantlyhighernumberoffemales(40128)
comparedtomales(32010)whowrotetheNSCexamination.
A similar pattern occurs when examining the learners who qualify for Bachelor studies, particularly in the poorer
provinces.
Source: DBE –National Senior Certificate: Technical Report, 2013
8
2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
50.0 50.0
56.1
60.8
64.1
59.7
62.1
68.5
59.6
52.3
57.3
51.6
70.0
65.0
60.0
55.0
50.0
45.0
40.0
MaleFemale
Possiblereasonscouldbepregnancyrelated,orrelatedtosupportfromparentsandguardiansforgirl’seducation.Girls
continuetohavemoreresponsibilitiesforchildcareandhouseworkandlesstimeforstudyingthanboys.Thesegendered
inequalitiesineducationcontinueintoadulthoodandgenderedinequalitiesinthelabourmarket,thehomeandsociety
morebroadly.Genderinequalitiesmustbeaddressedintheschoolingsystem,aswellasthroughchanginggendered
powerrelationsinsociety.
Figure 6: Candidates qualifying for Bachelor studies by gender, 2013
Source: DBE –National Senior Certificate: Technical Report, 2013
Table 6: Overall achievement and candidates qualifying for Bachelor studies by gender, 2013
Female(%) Male(%)
Overall
Achievement
QualifiedforBachelorStudies
OverallAchievement
QualifiedforBachelorStudies
EasternCape 62.1 17.9 68.5 20.3Limpopo 68.4 20.4 75.7 25.6NorthernCape 73.4 23.4 75.8 23.2Mpumalanga 75.8 24.1 79.7 28.0FreeState 86.0 32.8 89.0 33.3KwaZulu-Natal 76.8 32.8 78.0 32.2NorthWest 85.9 34.1 88.8 35.8Gauteng 86.5 40.6 87.5 36.9WesternCape 84.3 41.7 86.3 39.8RSA 76.8 30.4 80.0 30.8Source: DBE –National Senior Certificate: Technical Report, 2013
9
45.0
40.0
35.0
30.0
25.0
20.0
15.0
10.0
FEMALE MALE
Easte
rn C
ape
Lim
popo
Nor
th W
est
Gau
teng
Wes
tern
Cap
e
Kwa
Zulu
Nat
al
Mpu
mal
anga
Nor
ther
n Cap
e
Free
State
4. Factors possibly affecting results
Therearemanyfactorsthatcanpossiblyaffectmatricresults.Theyrangefromhistorical,political,socio-economicfactors,
language,infrastructure,curriculum,gender,qualityineducation,teachersandlearners,etc…
Inthissection,webrieflylookattwofactors,namely,thequalityineducationandhistoricalfactors.
4.1 Historical and political factors
Theapartheidsystemdeliberatelysetouttounderminepeople'shumanworthandlawstosubjugatepeopletranslated
into all aspects of life, including education.Manifestations of apartheid persist in terms of academic performance,
infrastructureandsettlementdemographics.Apartfromanemergingmiddleclasslayer,thelargemajorityofpeoplewho
wereoppressedduringapartheidremainmiredinsimilarsocialconditionsinpost-apartheidSouthAfrica.
Table7showstheseparateeducationdepartmentsoftheformerregime.Itexposestheunevendistributionofresources
ineducation.Unequalplanningexcludedthemajorityofpeoplefromtheupperechelonsoftheeconomy.Resource
deprivationaccompaniedbyimposedracialidentitieswerewaystodenythemajorityofpeopleofadecenteducation.
Desegregationofschoolingafter1994didnotdoawaywiththeracialidentitiesimposedonschools.Suchidentitieslargely
correlatewithsocio-economicandsocialstatusandlocation.Table7showshowresourcingandracialcategorisation,in
theformofseparateeducationdepartmentsentrenchedlowqualityandunevendevelopment.Indescendingorderof
privilegethedepartmentswereasfollows;TheHouseofAssembly(HoA)wastheinstitutionthatrepresentedthemost
privilegedracialgroup insociety followedbyHouseofDelegates (HoD),HouseofRepresentatives (HoR)andat the
DepartmentofEducationandTraining(DET).
Thistablerepresentstheapartheid'sracialclassificationsofsocalled“white”(HOA),“indian”(HOD)“coloured”(HOR),
“black”(DET).Thesepotentiallyoffensivetermsarestatedapologeticallyhere,toputthistableinitshistoricalcontext.
Table 7: Education budget: learners and per learner funding inherited by the Easter Cape Department of Education 1994/1995
EasternCapechildrenreceivedroughlyonefifthofwhatwasspentontheprivilegedgroupintheHouseofAssembly
(HOA),i.e.,R1,635perchildcomparedtoR5,323perchild.Accompanyingsuchunequalallocationwerearangeofother
factorssuchasanimpoverishedcurriculumandamentalitythat,generallyspeaking,schoolssocialisedchildreninto
takingon inferiorconceptionsofthemselvesandfeedingthemintoacheap labourpool.Theexceptionwascertain
missionschoolsoftheearlytomid-20thcenturythatprovidedhighacademicstandards.However,fewpeopleaccessed
thiseducationandsuchstandardswerenotobtainableinmostschools.
Thepost-apartheideraabolishedtheapartheidlawsanddesegregatedtheschoolingsystem.Howevermuchmoreneeds
tobedonetoestablishanewhistoricalcommunity.Thisincludesamongotherthings,deracialisingsocietyandshaping
freshidentitiesthatarecharacterisedbycommunitiesthemselvesowningschoolsandshapingtheschoolingexperience.
HoA HoD HoR DET Transkei Ciskei EC
Budget
(R’000)
404,996 9,438 472,822 805,678 1,663,519 578,375 3,934,828
Learners 76,079 2,041 132,225 334,909 1,580,089 281,244 2,406,587
Per Learner
R5,323 R4,624 R3,576 R2,406 R1,053 R2,056 R1,635
10
4.2Qualityineducation
Accesstoqualityandsuccessineducationisatthecentreofwhatneedstobeaddressedintheeducationsystemacross
thecountry.Bynomeansdoestheincreaseinpassratesmeanbetteraccesstoqualityandsuccessineducation.Quality
ineducationisratherasetofattributesthatreferstoastudent'sabilitytothinkcriticallyandactindependently.This
meanshe/shecanapplywhatislearnttorangeofcontextswhichincludestheabilitytolocateyourselfinbroadersociety.
Theeducationsystemisnotgeared,onanumberoflevels,todevelopthesetwoqualitiesinyoungpeople.
Theeducationsystemisbasedonasecondlanguageoronwhatisoftenessentiallyaforeignlanguage.Thismeansthat
childrenlearninalanguagethatthey,theirparentsandoftentheteachersarenotfullyproficientin.Learninginasecond
languagemeansthatchildrenarenotallowedtothinkcreativelyanddevelopintuitively.Literacyisnotdevelopedfullyin
anylanguage,includingthefirstlanguage.Itfollowsthenthateducationisanalienatingexperienceforover80%of
EasternCapechildren.Over80%ofschoolinggoingpopulationintheECspeakisiXhosaastheirfirstlanguage.Aperson's
firstlanguageprovidesthecodeforculturalandintellectualexpression.Expressioninone'shomelanguageallowsfor
spontaneityculturallyandcognitivelybutEnglishisusedexclusivelyasthelanguagetoaspiretoandtolearnin.This
contradictstheLanguage-in-EducationPolicy(1997)thatstateslearninginones'homelanguageisthebasisforoptimal
conceptualdevelopment.
CompetenceinEnglishisanecessaryrequirementforacompleteeducationsowehavetopursuethatasaneducational
goal; intheverysamewayAfricanlanguages, isalsonecessaryforacompleteeducation.ThehegemonyofEnglish
displacesAfricanlanguagesasLanguagesoflearningandteachingfromveryearlyon,whichisproblematiconmany
levels.Pedagogylevelisparticularlyimportanthereasitplacesanadditionalburdenonlearnerswhogenerallystruggle
onasocio-economicleveland;byhavingtolearninalanguagemediumwheretheyhavetostrugglewiththegrammar
andvocabularymakesprocessingconceptsandthinkingcreativelyextremelydifficult. Thiscrucialfactor-thelanguage
mediumfactor-affectstheabilityofmostEasternCapechildrentolearnandthereforethequalityofeducationsuffers.
Withaprovincethatmanifestsahugedisparitybetweenhome language (isiXhosa,Sotho,Afrikaans)and language
medium(English),isoneofthefactorsweraisehere.Theintegralrelationshipbetweenlanguagemediumpracticesand
literacydevelopmentenablesstudentstolearnmoremeaningfully.
Factorsrelatingtothehistorical-politicalcontextandtheextenttowhichthelanguagemediumpracticescontradictthe
experienceschildrenbringtoclassroomsarekeyinsettingtheEasternCapeupforitsrelativelowperformancerelativeto
other provinces. Embedded in these twobroad areas are organisational cultures that seem to perpetuate volatile
leadership,unsupportedteachersand less thaneffectiveadministrativeandprovisioningsystems.Otherprovinces,
particularlythemoreurbanones,havemadeeasieradjustmentstotheintegrationofdepartmentsandtheassociated
efficiencyandstandardsofaccountabilitythatsuchadevelopmentimplies.
Humanresourcefulness,basicmaterialresources,literacydevelopment,andhistoricallegacyappearunevenlyacross
provinceswhichissuggestiveofhowoppressionlingers.Comparingthematricresultsoftherespectiveprovincesmakes
farmoresenseifitisputinitshistoricalcontext.
Accesstoqualityandsuccessineducationisthereforeshapedbyhowhistoricalforcesataprovinciallevelinfluence
possibilitiesineducation.
5 How can we respond to these issues?
TheextenttowhichProvincialEducationDepartmentsensurelearnersreadinesstoundertaketheNSCexamination
remainsofutmostimportance.The2013interventionstrategiesfocusedonGrade12teachersupport,thedevelopment
ofresources,supplementarytuition,andenhancedassessmentinterventionsthatwereanticipatedtoimpactpositively
onthe2013NSClearneroutcomes.TheProvincialEducationDepartmentalsofocusesonspecificchallengesinlow
performingsubjectsinformedbythepreviousNSCtechnicalreports.
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Grade11and12interventionsareimportantforimprovingresults,However,preparationforNSCexaminationstartsatthe
beginningoftheformalschoolingsystem.Indeeditstartswithasafe,caringandnurturinginfancyandchildhood,withan
increasingemphasisbeingplacedonEarlyChildhoodEducation.Hereweraisefourcriticalissuesthatmustbeaddressedto
increasestheprospectforqualityandsuccessineducationintheEasternCape.
Access:providingaccesstoqualityandsuccessineducationthataddresseshistoricalinequalitiesalonggender,raceand
classispivotaltobuildingabettereducation.
Curriculum:deliveringacurriculumthatismeaningfulandthatdevelopstheculturalidentitiesthatchildrenbringtoschools,
iscentraltodevelopinganalyticalmindsandaliterategeneration.
Leadership:foregroundinglearningthatconnectsclassroompracticestothekindofsocietythatweseektobuildisessential
toelevateeducationasapublicgoodforeverybody.
Accountability:Developinginstitutionalculturesthatfostermutualaccountabilityamongparents,teachersandstudents
willenablehigherlevelsoffunctioningatschools,especiallyhigherlevelsofeducationalstandards.
6 Conclusion
Inthisreport,aperspectiveontheEasternCape2013matricresultswerepresented.Thereportrevealedthatthecountry's
achievementpeakedin2013.Suchperformancehasnotbeenreachedsince2003.MatricresultsattainedintheEastern
Capealso improvedsignificantly.Thepass rate in theprovincewashigher formale than for female.Even though the
province'sachievementwasthelowestinthecountry,enrolmentintheEasternCapecontinuedtogrowconsiderably,
signallingthatmoreyouthareaccessinglearninginstitutions.
TheDepartmentofEducationcannotfoldarmswhilematricresultsremainbelowtheaverageforthecountryasawhole.
The DoE has implemented a strategy that focuses on Grade 12 teacher support. The strategy concentrates on the
developmentofresources,supplementarytuition,andenhancedassessmentinterventionsthatwereanticipatedtoimpact
positivelyonthe2013NSClearneroutcomes.
Qualityineducation,asakeyfactorinupliftingeducation,isillusivewhenconsideredsuperficiallyagainstprovincialmatric
scores.Ithastobeunderstoodwithinaprovince'shistoricalandsocialcomplexities.ProvincialparticularitiesintheEastern
Capesuchas implementingeducationallysoundlanguagemediumpractices,attemptingtofurtherprofessionalisethe
bureaucracy,developingtransformationalleadershipfromschooltoheadoffice.Viewingeducationasapublicgoodto
benefitsocietywhereteachingandlearningareatthe“epi-centre”ofthesystem.
Moreconcretely,thepointsraisedhereaboutleadership,languagemediumpracticesandthecontentandmethodof
deliveringthecurriculum,allpointtothekindofteacherweenvisage.Weneedtoinvestindevelopingteacherswhoare
knowledgeable,caringandcommittedtoabuildingadifferentkindofsociety.
WroteAchieved%Achieved Wrote Achieved%Achieved Wrote Achieved%Achieved Wrote Achieved%AchievedTOTAL 64090 37364 58.3 65359 37997 58.1 63989 39443 61.8 72138 46840 61.9
Butterworth 3 339 1 559 46.7 3 813 1 746 45.8 3 925 2 115 53.9 4 407 2 596 58.9
Cofmvaba 1 746 995 57.0 1 379 955 69.3 1 560 1 131 72.5 1 839 1 300 70.7
Cradock 747
563
75.4
814
601
73.8
896
648
72.3
853
627
73.5
Dutywa 3 146
1 627
51.7
3 186
1 617
50.8
3 188
1 625
51.0
3 540
2 152
60.8
East London 5 608
3 754
66.9
6 284
4 006
63.7
5 811
3 995
68.7
6 138
4 488
73.1
Fort Beaufort 1 986
874
44.0
1 927
804
41.7
1 857
830
44.7
1 911
1 082
56.6
Graaff-Reinet 814
584
71.7
810
571
70.5
724
517
71.4
824
557
67.6
Grahamstown 901
579
64.3
904
626
69.2
861
583
67.7
1 060
662
62.5
King Williams Town 5 112
2 701
52.8
4 984
2 864
57.5
4 977
2 830
56.9
5 232
3 414
65.3
Lady Frere 1 249
756
60.5
1 131
760
67.2
1 323
833
63.0
1 417
942
66.5
Libode 4 891
2 295
46.9
5 772
2 299
39.8
3 653
2 169
59.4
5 580
3 356
60.1
Lusikisiki 2 497
1 508
60.4
2 978
1 739
58.4
3 592
2 133
59.4
3 792
2 240
59.1
Maluti 1 427
990
69.4
1 331
955
71.8
1 707
1 227
71.9
1 799
1 267
70.4
Mbizana 2 634
1 312
49.8
2 929
1 609
54.9
2 931
1 689
57.6
3 210
1 885
58.7
MT Fletcher 1 374
755
54.9
1 183
810
68.5
1 351
911
67.4
1 654
1 081
65.4
MT Frere 1 916
1 011
52.8
2 371
1 118
47.2
2 350
1 166
49.6
2 329
1 370
58.8
Mthatha 5 531
3 469
62.7
5 464
3 464
63.4
5 690
3 739
65.7
6 718
4 518
67.3
Ngcobo 1 180
776
65.8
1 312
918
70.0
1 503
910
60.5
1 729
1 174
67.9
Port Elizabeth 8 147
5 233
64.2
7 012
4 755
67.8
6 877
4 890
71.1
7 575
5 609
74.0
Queenstown 2 815 1 659 58.9 2 780 1 588 57.1 2 559 1 587 62.0 2 732 1 800 65.9
Qumbu 1 905 1 085 57.0 1 748 1 039 59.4 2 107 1 035 49.1 2 547 1 339 52.6 Sterspurit 2 110
1 171
55.5
2 140
1 050
49.1
1 996
1 120
56.1
2 133
1 219
57.1
Uitenhage 3 015
2 108
69.9
3 107
2 103
67.7
2 551
1 760
69.0
3 119
2 162
69.3
2010 2011 2012 2013
Eastern Cape Grade 12 pass rate in selected education districts: 2010-2013ANNEXURE
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