Eastern Cape Education MEC, Mandla Makupula, says the 2013 provincial matric pass rate represents a sustained increase since the 2011 results.
Speaking in Bhisho today, Makupula said the province's matric results were up by almost 14 percent on 2011 and 51 percent up on 2009.
Read the full statement below:
The provincial pass rate for 2013 is 64.9%, which represents an increase of 3.3% from the 61,6% we achieved in 2012. This is the highest overall pass rate achieved since 2008 (50,6%) and 1994 (48,5%).
The 2013 provincial pass rate also represents a further and sustained increase since the 2011 results and is up by almost 14% from the 51% we achieved in 2009. To reiterate, the last time we performed above 60% was in 2003 when we achieved 61.1%. We have now managed to stay above 60% for 2 years in a row, with further sustained increases way above 60% predicted in the years ahead.
In 2013, there is no cluster whose pass rate is below 60%
The top performing districts for 2013 are:
1st is PE with a pass rate of 74% an increase of 2.9%, which is a result of the high levels of political and technical investments and commitments made in 2013;
2nd is Cradock with 73.5%, a slight increase of 1.2%;
3rd is EL with 73.1% and an increase of 4.4%
as in 2012, there are 5 districts that again achieved results above 70% (including Cofimvaba and Maluti)
The three most improved districts for 2013 are Fort Beaufort, Dutywa and Mt Frere with pass rates of 56,6%, 60,8% and 58,8%, respectively. Their respective pass increases are 11,9%, 9,8% and 9,2% respectively. Fort Beaufort was the poorest performing district in 2012 with a 44,7% pass rate. If one considers the challenges within these three districts, then the achievements are very noteworthy.
The 3 worst performing districts for 2013 are:
Sterkspruit with 57,1% pass rate (vs 56,1% in 2012);
Fort Beaufort with 56,6% pass rate (vs 44,7% in 2012); and
Qumbu with 52,6% (vs 49,1% in 2012).
All three of these poorest performing districts, however, registered improvements in 2013 of 1%, 11,9% and 3.4% respectively.
Districts with pass rate below 60% have decreased since 2008 (in 2008 there were 17 districts, 2009 = 19 districts, 2010 = 12, 2011 = 11, 2012 = 10, 2013 = 7)
Currently there is no district with a pass rate below 50%
Number of schools performing below 60% has decreased from 608 in 2008 to 411 in 2013
Number of schools performing above 60% has increased from 297 in 2008 to 515 in 2013
The percentage of schools with a pass rate of below 30% has decreased from 32,3% in 2008 to 11.6% in 2012 and 7,8% in 2013
The percentage of schools with a pass rate of between 50-60%, 60-70%, 70-80% and 80-99% has also increased from 9,3%, 9%, 6,1% and 13,4% of schools in 2008 to 14,9%, 16,4%, 14,6%, and 19.9% of schools, respectively
The percentage of schools with a 100% pass rate has also increased from 4,4% of schools in 2008 to 4,8%, in 2013
The number of schools with a 0% pass rate has increased from 0 in 2012 to 2 schools in 2013, but where these two schools have very low grade 12 learner enrolments (4 grade 12 learners in Impey Siwisa High School in Fort Beaufort and 6 grade 12 learners at Resha Senior Sec School in King Williams Town, which both illustrate the need for policy interventions, eg rationalization/ mergers).
The Department has received the best quality of results in Dept since 2008, which is illustrated as follows:
Highest number of distinctions (11 038 in 2013 vs 9264 in 2012 vs 7398 in 2008)
Highest number of bachelors pass rate (13 686 in 2013 vs 11 246 in 2012 vs 8622 in 2008)
Highest number of diploma pass rate (19 179 vs 16 148 in 2012 vs 11 155 in 2008)
Highest number of higher certificate pass rate (13 950 vs 11 998 in 2012 vs 10 707 in 2008)
In terms of provincial ranking the province ranks 5th in terms of bachelors pass rates, 4th in terms of diploma pass rate, and 3rd in terms of higher certificate pass rate in all provinces.
The province registered a decreased percentage of learners who passed various subjects as compared to 2012, in subjects such as Afrikaans 1st Additional (-0,4%), Agricultural Technology (-2,2%), Mathematical Literacy (-0,6%), Mechanical Technology (-1,6%), Music (-0,1%) and Religious Studies (-3,5%). The more concerning learner pass decreases in Accounting (-4,2%) and Economics (-5,3%) are noted and are part of provincial and district improvement plans for 2014. However, in 2 main gateway subjects, Mathematics and Physical Science the province has improved by 5,3% in both subjects (despite teacher shortages). This clearly illustrates the notable levels of success being achieved by the province through various interventions to deal with some of the teacher shortages being experienced in certain scarce skill subjects.
