First aid strategy for ailing schools

MORE than 400 schools that scored below a 60-percent matric pass rate are expected to compile an improvement strategy and highlight problem areas to be tackled by the KZN Education Department.

The department will be setting up task teams of officials to help these 431 schools to improve their results. First aid for the ailing schools will also include quarterly tests and Saturday classes. Subject committees would tackle subjects that teachers and pupilswere struggling to master.

Yesterday, the department’s superintendent-general, Nkosinathi Sishi, said these schools would receive individual attention in a bid to improve on the class of 2011’s overall pass rate.

“As soon as schools open, there are going to be Saturday classes for Grade 12 pupils,” he said.

Education MEC Senzo Mchunu would also launch a programme to improve education in the province.

While the national pass rate has moved up from 67.8 percent in 2010 to 70.2 percent for 2011, KZN has dropped by 2.6 percentage points, from 70.1 percent in 2010 to 68.1 percent.

Members of the provincial intervention team would visit underperforming schools and monitor the execution of the programme.

The subject committee would focus on subjects, including maths, where results were down on 2010.

While the maths pass rate had dropped from 47.6 percent in 2010 to 39.5 percent in 2011, physical science has improved from 50.4 to 51.9 percent.

Sishi said schools that achieved a below 60-percent matric pass rate would write compulsory quarterly tests that would be set by the department. “And when a school writes these, they are monitored closely by education officials. Schools that achieved above 60 percent for all subjects, but got below 60 percent overall pass rate as a school, would also write the compulsory quarterly tests.”

Schools that achieved above 60 percent, but underperformed in certain subjects, would write the compulsory tests for selected subjects, but set their own tests for those subjects passed.

Thursday’s Daily News incorrectly stated that Star College pupil Shivan Sookdeo scored 10 distinctions. In fact, the 18-year-old, who plans to study actuarial science at UCT, scored 13, including one for Additional Maths.