Mpondoland school raises bar for matrics with top-class results, writes Lulamile Feni
WHILE the Eastern Cape continues to languish at the bottom of the ladder when it comes to matric results, schools like Toli High School in rural Mpondoland, which has achieved a pass rate of more than 90% for the last seven years, is a template on which other schools can build.
While other schools set their target at 70%, Toli dreams of a 100% pass rate, and its teachers regard anything less than 80% a poor performance requiring drastic intervention.
The school has even said that they would only make a loud noise about their achievements when they achieve their target of a 100% pass rate, and hope to maintain it for many years thereafter.
“We have yet to achieve our target, hence we have not stood on top of the mountain and shouted about our success,” acting principal Nontsikelelo Madolo, who is also the school’s physical science teacher, said.
For the past seven years, since 2010, the school has achieved between a 91% and 97.3% pass rate.
Its pupils, however, have achieved a 100% pass rate in certain subjects: accounting, business studies, English, life orientation, religious studies, tourism and IsiXhosa.
The school was founded in 1984 as one Grade 8 class of 34 pupils. In the first year, all of its 34 pupils passed. Even when the school presented its first matric class in 1986, it achieved a 100% pass rate. The lowest pass rate the school has experienced to date was in 1990 when it achieved 80%.
Situated 10km from Lusikisiki, in the village of Jambeni under the Bomvini Tra- ditional Council, it has been the top-performing school in the Libode district for all these years, except in 2014, when St Patrick’s High achieved 100%. How do they do it? For one thing, there is an amazing unity between the school and its community. And all 44 of the school’s teachers are committed to ensuring their pupils understand the work, even working during the March, June and September holidays.
The matric syllabus is always finished by June every year.
These results are even more remarkable, given that the school is one of the many mud schools that still exist in the Eastern Cape and its decaying infrastructure includes classrooms with no ceiling and leaky roofs.
Instead of security boards that usually read: “This school is protected by XYZ Security company”, their security sign reads: “Toli High School is protected with the blood of Jesus of Nazareth”.
They have the same logical challenges faced by many schools throughout the province – too few classrooms, a shortage of teachers, insufficient pupil support material – where three Grade 12 pupils share one textbook.
Explains school governing body (SGB) chairman Lucky Dubedube: “The school is founded on four pillars: excellence, discipline, commitment and dedication.
“This school is a beacon of hope for the surrounding communities. The problem we are faced with now is that everybody wants to send their children here and we do not have enough space to accommodate everyone.”
Since its inception two dedicated teachers, Nomvuyo Ndabeni, 56, and Thandiswa Ntsasa, 57, have been part of the growth and achievements of Toli High School and have watched in awe as it grew from 34 pupils in one grade to five grades – Grades 8 to 12 – with 1 500 pupils.
Ntsasa teaches English and Ndabeni religious studies to Grade 10, 11, and 12 pupils.
But it is not the increasing numbers of pupils that make Ndabeni and Ntsasa happiest about the situation, it is more the consistently high matric pass rate and the fact that all their matrics are passing the subjects they are teaching them.
Ntsasa and Ndabeni were not only the school’s first teachers, but they literally assisted in the actual building of the school.
“We fetched water from the river and carried it back in buckets on our head. We even assisted in the making of mud bricks to build the school. We were the bricklayers. We were not paid for it but volunteered. We wanted to ensure that the school would stand and here it is today, making us proud,” Ntsasa said.
Ndabeni said the early days were very good days, and that they were proud of the progress made.
“It make us even more proud that we are still at this school and that we will retire from here. It make us happy that we are part of a winning team of teachers and a successful school like Toli. Every teacher is proud to teach here,” Ndabeni said.
Madolo, Dubedube as well Ntsasa and Ndabeni, all said the school had been built with the assistance of Chief Zizamele Sigcau of the Bomvini Traditional Council.
They said the school had started the first Grade 8 class as Zizamele Junior Secondary School, but when it became a high school the following year in 1985, it was renamed Toli High School, after Chief Toli Sigcau, grandfather of Chief Zizamele Sigcau.
Zisamele Junior Secondary School is now one of Toli’s feeder schools.
There are plans for a multimillion rand state-of-the-art school to be built near their mud school structure, but both Ndabeni and Ntsasa worry that it will not be finished by the time they retire at 60.
“The building of the new school was supposed to start in 2015, but nothing has happened. Pupils are still cramped in these few decaying classrooms,” Dubedube said.
As a Quintile 1 school, Toli is a no-fee school with 11 junior schools feeding into it. However, parents in the Western Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, Port Elizabeth and many other areas strive to have their children attend Toli.
Ingredients making up the school’s recipe for success include: a belief in God and the power of prayer, unity among teachers, school management as well as with parents and the community.
“We are one big united and loving family. Everybody knows to take their responsibilities seriously. Teachers have set their individual targets at 80% per subject,” said Madolo, adding that more often than not this was exceeded.
Tembekile Dobe, who had been principal at the school since 1990 but retired last year, said his daughter, former Toli High School pupil Mmangaliso Dobe, currently doing an actuarial science degree, had been South Africa’s top Grade 12 pupil for quintile 1 schools in 2015. Another daughter, Sibabalo Dobe, who is currently studying medicine, passed her matric at Toli.
Among their 2016 matrics, Siphelele Sibutha achieved five distinctions, and was one of the Eastern Cape’s top 10 pupils.