Matric results are part of life’s bigger examinations

THE matric results announced last week were revealed in a context that had two major concerns.

One, and this is an annual red flag, was the thousands of candidates who fell by the wayside and did not even make it to the examination desks after enrolling at primary schools 12 years before.

The other was the high levels of cheating that have come to light, especially in KZN.

Young people implicated could end up with a criminal record and in any case will learn the lesson that you may cheat your way to a matric pass but you can’t cheat your way to success in life – you will get caught out.

But purely in terms of individual results, we congratulate those who passed and commiserate with those who did not; but we urge the latter, while being disappointed, to not give up.

Much emphasis is set on academic achievement, with the words ‘success’ and ‘failure’ attached to the results.

Certainly, the matric exams offer a measurable standard against which academic capability, teaching standards and personal effort can be assessed.

To attain a number of distinctions, there must have been plenty of hard work and disciplined study regimes.

We therefore salute and honour those who top the list of highest achievers; they deserve all the praise heaped on them.

So too for the majority who either attained the pass that will qualify them to enter tertiary institutions.

But what of those who ‘failed’ matric? Are they doomed to be losers in life?

The answer is a definite ‘no!’. There are many other attributes, skills and qualities, other than the ability to excel academically, which lead to success in the adult world.

One must caution that high grades alone are not a guarantee of future accomplishment.

Don’t be defined by other people’s parameters or expectations – and especially not by a grade on an exam paper.

If you ‘failed’, you are in good company.

It’s comforting to read a list of successful people who at some stage of their lives were rejected in their study or career paths.

Among the many are Winston Churchill, Albert Einstein, Thomas Edison, Vincent van Gogh, JK Rowling, Elvis Presley, Mozart and Beethoven.

Almost all overcame periods of gloom, adversity and despondency.

To sum up, if you ‘failed’ matric because you battle academically, it’s not the end of the world, so keep trying.

Of course, if you simply did not work hard and seriously enough, and allowed yourself to be distracted from your studies, learn the lesson.

No matter how deep the disappointment of not getting that matric pass was, there is plenty of help available, so use it.

People are uniquely gifted and each has a place and a purpose.

That’s the quest in life, to find our rightful place in the scheme of things.

And if the formal, academic route is not it, there will be other doors that open for those determined to give it their best shot.