The Portfolio Committee on Basic Education has commended the Matric Class of 2021 for their perseverance through very difficult times in South Africa’s education system to complete the National Senior Certificate (NSC) examinations.

Committee chairperson, Bongiwe Mbinqo-Gigaba, said the Class of 2021 has had to endure two years of blended or rotational learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“This class did not have a full Grade 11 year in 2020, which meant that the educators had to complete the curriculum that was not covered in that year in Grade 12, and that was an added pressure on our learners,” Mbinqo-Gigaba said.

This follows the announcement of the NSC matric results by Basic Education Minister, Angie Motshekga, on Thursday. The matric class of 2021 obtained an overall pass rate of 76.4%, an increase of 0.2% from 2020.

Mbinqo-Gigaba said despite the curriculum challenge that the learners faced, many also faced social challenges that included dealing with COVID-19-related illnesses and deaths in their families.

“This excludes the other common challenges of poverty, unemployment, gangsterism and drugs that our learners face on a daily basis. The committee notes these challenges and feels that under the circumstances, this cohort of learners made us extremely proud.

“We would like to congratulate them, their parents, caregivers, educators and the basic education sector as a whole,” Mbinqo-Gigaba said.

Free State is the leading province with 85.7%, an improvement of 0.6% from 2020, followed by Gauteng with 82.8%, and Western Cape with 81.2%. North West obtained 78.2%, KwaZulu-Natal 76.8%, Mpumalanga 73.6%, Eastern Cape 73%, Northern Cape 71.4%, and Limpopo 66.7%.

The number of candidates qualifying for admission to bachelor studies at universities is 256 031, an improvement of 21.4% from 2020.

Source: South African Government News Agency