South African Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga announced an 'improved' 2012 matric pass rate - up 3.7 percentage points from 70.2% in 2011. But what this figure masks tells a deeper and more significant story.
According to the Equal Education website, http://equaleducation.org.za/node/763, 551 837 learners wrote matric this year and 378 466 (73.9%) passed.
What the controversial Mrs Motshekga and her generally self-congratulatory ANC government do not add is that the current matric class was some 1 039 762 strong in Grade 10 in 2010. Therefore, since 2010, 487 925 learners have dropped out of school. And as the Equal Education analysts correctly state:
'Learner retention remains poor and may even have worsened slightly. This undermines the improve pass rate because it begs the question: 73.9% of what?'
The current crop of matrics were 1 150 637 strong in Grade 1, 2001. Between Grade 1 in 2001 and Grade 10 in 2010, they dropped slightly to the figure quoted above - 1 039 762. The alarming plunge of 487 925 learners, from 1 039 762 in 2010 to 551 837 in 2012, happened on the watch of Minister Motshekga and President Jacob Zuma, a fact that is significant as it is damning and which continues to erode the education of South Africa's youth.
A final word from the Equal Education analysts:
'Less than half those present on day 1 of grade 10 were there to write their matric exams. This is a crisis of monumental proportions. The 73.9% pass rate needs to be considered against the number of learners who did not make it through the schooling system. These young people now face the task of finding employment to survive.'
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