MEC won’t set high standard for the class of 2018 matrics
Legislature tired of EC being perpetual under-performer
Eastern Cape education MEC Mandla Makupula wants this year’s Grade 12 class to achieve a 66% pass rate – a meagre 1% increase from last year’s matric pass rate.
As a result, a war of words between Makupula and the portfolio committee on education has erupted as the MEC claims that setting this year’s class a 70% matric pass rate, which the committee adopted, was unreasonable.
However, provincial portfolio committee chairman Mzoleli Mrara said they were tired of the Eastern Cape province being at the bottom of SA’s pass rate for seven consecutive years. “The matric pass rate target for 2018 is 66% from 65% last year, which represents an increase of 1%.
“The department of education must set targets that will improve the pass rate in the province and that target should be 70% for 2018 instead of the 66%,” Mrara said during a sitting.
Makupula wasted no time to fire back at the committee and the legislature.
“The upward trajectory over the past three years continued with the class of 2017 improving by 5.7%. In fact, honourable members, when I was looking, the province in front of Eastern Cape is Limpopo at eighth place with 65.4% and we follow with 65%, and I think we are getting there,” said Makupula.
The portfolio committee was angered by the continued lack of specialist professionals for schools despite “huge amounts of funds” set aside annually for the recruitment drive, as well as the “high” drop-out rate in these schools.