THE SYSTEM IS CONSOLIDATING AND MATURING

Society reaps the seed of our consistent call for all of us to take responsibility;
The results show a consolidation and an improvement of the system;

The results reflect an inequality in our society;

Teachers are a major seed for quality education;
Education is a public good and must be funded by Government.

The South African Democratic Teachers Union (SADTU) congratulates successful matric candidates, their families, the teachers, the examiners and the effective administration of the exam process by the department. The 2011 matric pass rate of 70, 2% is a 2, 4% increase from the 67, 8% obtained in 2010.

Brief analysis of matric results

1. Standardisation process

We congratulate Umalusi - an independent examinations quality assurance body for being the first institution to allow the process to be transparent.

Umalusi has also ensured that no learner is unfairly advantaged or disadvantaged.

We are happy with the fact that raw marks were accepted in most subjects. This is an indication of the maturity the system. It also shows the experience of teachers, markers and examiners since the introduction of the NSC in 2008.

2.  Access and quality

We note the decline of the numbers of learners who wrote in 2011

However this is compensated by the increasing number of learners who opted for FET colleges. To maintain the momentum for increased access, we have to understand and address the factors which led to drop-out and failure. Our sense is that issues of historical disadvantage and poverty associated with race, class and the rural-urban divide, and uneven support and poor management especially in some districts and provinces are crucial here.

We are encouraged by the increase in the number of learners who obtained Bachelor degrees entry requirement - 23, 5% in 2010 to 24, and 3% in 2011.

On gateway subjects, we are happy with the increased pass in physical science, we note the decline in mathematics, accounting and economics.   The declining number of learners who wrote these subjects is still a concern.

Although there was an increase in the number of learners - from poor communities who passed and achieved endorsements - much more needs to be done to assist them to access tertiary and higher education institutions.

We commend and congratulate the no-fee schools for having improved in their performance as compared to 2010. Continuous improvement of these schools indicates the need for free, compulsory public education.

Admission policies in the institutions of higher learning should accommodate these learners.

For school leavers who do not go to university, the development of the FET sector and skills development opportunities in the industry becomes vital especially in this period of high unemployment.

3. Provinces

Most provinces, except for the Eastern Cape, surpassed the 60% average threshold. This indicates that when more effort is put into the system, we see improvement.

We also note the marked decline in serious and technical irregularities in the examinations. This is a further indication that the system is maturing.

The Way Forward:

As SADTU we would suggest a number of strategic challenges and priorities for 2012:

• We call on those who did not make it this time not to give up, and we expect the Department of Education to support their efforts to re-write.
• We present the following options for those who didn't make it:
  • Re-write as part-time learners and attend catch-up programmes provided by provincial education;
  • Consider bridging courses in further education institutions;
  • Suicide is not an option. Parents and learners should seek counselling services;
  • The department should also offer counselling services to those learners;
  • Enter the system as a part-time student;
  • Provinces must make explicit how and where repeaters are to be accommodated and supported. We dare not abandon these learners to a life of unemployment and hopelessness.
• Do away with the tender process on supplying learner/teacher support material to unlock resources to build laboratories and libraries in all schools.
• Immediately address the infrastructural backlogs to improve the physical conditions of schools and classrooms.
• Safety and learner discipline must be a priority to all in order to unlock the time and energy of our teachers.
• Reduce the class sizes in order to give each learner an opportunity to benefit from individual attention.
• Develop and support teachers. Teachers who are confident in subject matter and teaching techniques are crucial to delivering quality education. These issues were fully covered by the launched Integrated Teacher development Framework in 2011. The task is now for both the department and the unions to implement the plan.
• Analysis of the matric results indicates the language of instruction remain a challenge for English second language candidates. We need to provide more resources, time and teachers to address this both in terms of expanding home language tuition and improving the quality of English teaching. SADTU welcomes the national curriculum review which promises to increase time devoted to language at the foundation phase including Grade R. We need to be very clear that language development is vital to arts and sciences, as well as being the bearer of the culture and heritage of all our people.
• We need to remind ourselves that education takes place over 12 years inclusive of Early Childhood Development and cannot be measured simply by the matric outcomes.
• As a matter of urgency the Department needs to roll out training to support implementation of the new Curriculum Assessment Policy Statement (Caps). This should also help to focus teaching strategies.
• Most importantly, as stakeholders - teachers, learners, parents, community and the Department of Education - we need to commit ourselves to improving the quality of education. To this end, SADTU fully supports the Quality Learning and Teaching Campaign with the understanding that teachers must be ‘on time, in class, on task, well-prepared, and professionally behaved at all times.' By the same token, the Department of Education needs to provide basic infrastructure, learning materials and training and local support to teachers. We welcome COSATU's commitment to encouraging its members to participate in School Governing Bodies.
• We also acknowledge the call to adopt poor performing schools as signed by NEDLAC and COSATU.  
• We call upon financial institutions and NSFAS to provide financial support to poor students in order to increase access to tertiary and higher education institutions.

SADTU would once more, commend all South African teachers who gave their best to ensure the achievement of these improved results with many working under difficult conditions.

Statement issued by SADTU General Secretary Mugwena Maluleke, January 4 2012

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