#ClassOf2022 continues to close the inequality gap

This morning I visited Hector Peterson Secondary School in Wallacedene to celebrate the release of the individual 2022 National Senior Certificate Results to candidates.

The school has produced excellent results this year, despite the surrounding community facing so many challenges. They achieved an incredible 92.6% pass rate in the 2022 matric exams – a whopping 14.1 percentage point increase from last year.

Moreover, 55% of their candidates achieved bachelor’s passes – up from 40.2% last year. And they did this all while increasing the number of candidates writing from 204 to 229.

We congratulate Principal Mike Mavovana and the matric teachers of Hector Peterson Secondary School, and thank them for the support they have given their learners.

And we especially congratulate Hector Peterson Secondary School’s matric Class of 2022: they have shown incredible grit and determination, and should be very proud of their achievement.

District results

It is fitting that we visited Metro East Education District for the individual results release today, for the second year running. Director Landie Diamond and her team have done a fantastic job increasing the district’s pass rate by 1.15 percentage points to 78.29% this year, adding to their increase achieved last year.

Gone are the days when it was assumed that Metro East would be at the bottom of the district log. They are now knocking on the door of 80%! And they are closing the inequality gap that schools in areas with difficult socio-economic circumstances face.

We also congratulate Overberg, Cape Winelands, and Metro Central Education districts for increasing their pass rates, and Metro North Education District for claiming the top spot at 85.46%. Well done to Director Wendy Horn and team!

Quintile results

There is more good news regarding the inequality gap from our quintile results for no-fee schools.

Our quintile 1 schools raised their pass rate 2 percentage points to 70.8%, beating quintile 2 schools. And our quintile 3 schools also increased their pass rate by 0.3 percentage points, to 76.1%. These schools are rapidly closing the gap with higher quintiles.

We are also delighted that the number of underperforming schools – schools that have achieved below 60% in the exams – has declined this year, from 38 in 2021, to 30 in 2022. We work hard with our underperforming schools, so it is great to see this number declining.

Re-marks, re-checks, and supplementary exams

For those candidates that did not achieve their desired results, there are options. I would encourage all learners who did not pass their exams not to give up and to continue doing whatever they can to complete Grade 12.

We encourage all learners who did not achieve their desired marks to apply for a re-mark or re-check if they do not feel their results reflect their performance, or to write the supplementary exams in June. More information on these options is available on the WCED website.

There are measures in place to receive counselling for anyone who is disappointed with their results, either by approaching their school, which will put them in touch with the relevant people in the district offices, or by phoning the Safe Schools Hotline - 0800 45 46 47.

Congratulations again to our Class of 2022 – a fantastic set of achievements of which we can all be very proud!

Candidates can collect their results from their schools today, 20 January 2022. They are also available on the WCED website: https://wcedonline.westerncape.gov.za/

Source: Government of South Africa