Set your sights on university

THE Department of Basic Education plans to enable more matrics to make it to university by 2019, and beyond.

This is according to Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga.

She was delivering the keynote address at a round-table discussion under the banner “Schools that Work II – Lessons from the Ground”.

Motshekga said the National Education Evaluation and Development Unit (Needu) had studied top-performing schools based on criteria including that the schools had a pass rate of 95% or above in the past four years; and 100 or more candidates participated in the 2016 National Senior Certificate examinations.

Their operations would be used as a yardstick for struggling schools, increase the number of Grade 12s who become eligible for a bachelor’s programme at university; increase the number of matrics who pass mathematics; and increase the number of Grade 12 pupils who pass physical science, said Motshekga.

The discussion was attended by education MECs, and provincial heads of department.

“In the educational marathon South Africa is making progress.

“This can be seen by the results of such international studies as the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (Timss) and the Southern and East African Consortium for Monitoring Educational Quality (SACMEQ) which show that the performance of South African learners is on an upward trajectory.

“Another indicator of the progress in the educational marathon is the fact that in the past two years quintile 1, 2 and 3 schools are now producing more bachelor degrees than ever before, although statistically, more bachelor degrees are produced in quintile 4 and 5 schools,” Motshekga said.

In January, she announced that the pass rate increased from 70.7% in 2015 to 72.5% in 2016.

A total of 8 076 pupils got distinctions for maths, and 7 046 obtained distinctions in physical science.

The Western Cape achieved the highest percentage – at 40.9% – of passes in the country with access to bachelor degree studies.

Provincial education spokesperson Paddy Attwell said the province was implementing a comprehensive strategy to support teaching and learning in mathematics in all grades. “Special support for matrics this year includes Winter Schools during the July holiday.”.

Passes with access to bachelor degree studies were 18 254 (38.8%) in 2014; 22 379 (41.7%) in 2015; and 20 804 (40.9%) in 2016 In the province 77% of matrics passed maths last year, and 74% passed physical science.