The Portfolio Committee on Basic Education is satisfied with the updated Status Report on Matric Examinations Readiness, noting that the first day proceeded smoothly, despite challenges posed by severe weather conditions in the Eastern Cape.

On Tuesday, the Portfolio Committee received an update report from the Department of Basic Education (DBE) and the Council for Quality Assurance in General and Further Education and Training (Umalusi) on examination readiness for the National Senior Certificate (NSC).

The committee said it noted concerns that the weather has already had an impact on the examinations, testing the DBE’s contingency plans in Gqeberha in the Eastern Cape, where storms affected electricity supply, preventing Grade 12 learners from doing the Computer Applied Technology (CAT) practical examination.

The exam was scheduled for Tuesday.

‘The committee has, however, been assured that as part of its planning, the DBE ensures that more than one question paper is set and quality approved by Umalus
i for each exam paper, so the 400 affected learners will do the examination on another date,’ the committee said in a statement.

Committee chairperson Joy Maimela said although the committee is concerned about back-up plans to deal with all eventualities, their fears have been allayed due the contingency plans reported on.

‘We urge the DBE and Provincial Education Departments (PEDs) to take note of further weather warnings and make the necessary plans to accommodate our matric learners.’

READ | Eastern Cape disaster teams on high alert

The committee heard that the first day of the examinations went by swiftly and seamlessly. The exams commenced on 21 October and will conclude on 28 November 2024.

Over the examination period, 200 question papers are scheduled to be written. Six question papers were written on the first day on Monday.

On Tuesday, a further 15 papers were written on Computer Applications Technology (Practical) and non-official languages. Wednesday’s papers are Today Business Studies and In
formation Technology.

In its preliminary briefing on examination readiness last month, the committee heard that that 727 121 full-time candidates and 155 215 part-time candidates are registered for this year’s NSC examinations.

A total of 6 334 public schools and 575 independent centres are serving as exam centres.

The seventh cohort of learners is to sit for South African Sign Language Home Language (SASL HL) examinations. A total of 210 candidates for the SASL HL exams come from 23 schools in nine provinces, compared to 134 candidates in 2023.

Marking

The committee previously heard that more than 55 000 markers have been appointed. Concerns were raised by committee members about reports of a shortage of markers for certain subjects.

The DBE said that there is a shortage in History, English (HL) and Afrikaans (HL and FAL).

To overcome this problem, a staggered marking approach has been adopted by some PEDs so that Paper 3 of the languages are marked in the first session.

Other PEDs have embarked on a
second recruitment drive and a few PEDs have extended the number of marking days. The committee was assured that the shortage of markers will not compromise the quality of marking.

In this regard, Umalusi said it has concluded the audit of the appointed markers to verify that their appointments align with established criteria, except for four provinces – North West, Limpopo, Free State and Northern Cape – which will be finalised by 30 October 2024.

Umalusi indicated that it is satisfied with the continuous enhancement of security measures, particularly the expedited vetting of individuals involved in handling live question papers.

To mitigate the identified risk regarding the partially approved storage points, with specific reference to the DBE, the department will use concessions from the heads of provincial departments to grant permission, and Umalusi will conduct a sample on some of these storage facilities for monitoring purposes.

Umalusi said that during the verification of marked scripts, it will tr
ack how the PEDs are managing the marking process in subjects where marker shortages were identified as a risk.

Additionally, Umalusi will closely monitor the implementation of the staggered marking approach to ensure the credibility of the examinations.

Maimela wished the Class of 2024 every success as they continue their exams.

Source: South African Government News Agency