impostor matric exams KwaZulu-Natal

Matric exams have started! This time of the year can bring a mix of excitement and stress as learners near the end of their school careers. Image: Pixabay

Matric results: Announced pass rate vs ‘real’ pass rate

Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga announced that the matric Class of 2021 had achieved a 76.4% pass rate, but some disagree

impostor matric exams KwaZulu-Natal

Matric exams have started! This time of the year can bring a mix of excitement and stress as learners near the end of their school careers. Image: Pixabay

Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga is pleased with the results of the National Senior Certificate (NSC) exams for 2021, with the class having achieved a pass rate of 76.4%, up marginally from 76.2% for 2020’s candidates. But the figure isn’t quite accurate, depending on who you ask.

Motshekga announced the matric results on Thursday evening, 20 January 2022.

The accuracy of the official matric pass rate has always been challenged, including by the Democratic Alliance (DA) and NGO Equal Education. The DA is yet to give its official reaction to the matric results, but when it does, its “real” national pass rate will likely be much lower than the one announced by the Department of Basic Education. This is because the party uses Grade 10 enrolments as a way to measure what it says is the true pass rate.

When the 2020 matric results were announced, the DA said the pass rate for that cohort was 44.1%, significantly lower than the 76.2% declared by Motshekga at the time.

ALSO READ: Matric results: Here are 2021’s best – and worst – performing provinces

MATRIC RESULTS: ‘REAL’ PASS RATE IS 54% – EQUAL EDUCATION

According to Equal Education, the “real” national pass mark from the 2021 matric results is 54%. The NGO also believes using the throughput rate of learners from Grade 2 (to matric) will give a more clearer picture.

As far as the official pass rate goes, there is a distinction – the number of matriculants who passed, including progressed learners, and excluding them.

“The 2021 NSC overall pass rate, with the progressed learners included, stands at 76.4% – an improvement of 0.2% from the pass rate achieved by the Class of 2020.  This, represents a record of five hundred and thirty seven thousand, six hundred and eighty seven (537 687) candidates, who passed the 2021 NSC examinations – an improvement of 21.9% passes from 2020.  Without the progressed learners, the overall pass rate stands at 79.8% – just 0.2% below the 80% pass rate”

Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga

ALSO READ: Matric pass rate ‘increases by 0,2%’ – Here’s how it compares to the last decade