The Eden and Central Karoo district made its mark this year with the release of the 2017 matric results which revealed that the region managed an above 80 percent pass rate.
The district managed an 81.7 percent pass rate, well above the national rate of 75.1 percent, but just short of the Western Cape rate of 84.4 percent.
The region also became one of eight districts in the province to obtain a pass rate of more than 80 percent.
Even though the Western Cape saw a drop in its pass rate compared to last year’s 87.7 percent, it still secured a place in the top three in the country behind the Free State and Gauteng which respectively managed an 89.8 percent and 86.4 percent pass rate.
A five-year review by the Education Department shows three schools in the district obtained a 100 percent pass rate five times in a row and these include Heidelberg High School, Oakdale Agricultural School in Riversdale and Shalom Academy in Ladismith.
Oakdale principal Andre Latsky said that this was however just a five-year window into results and that the school had obtained a 100 percent pass rate for the past 21 years.
Latsky said the secret to the school's success boiled down to dedicated staff, a structured academic system and hardworking students.
More than 78 percent of the school’s learners achieved bachelors passes and the top learner managed to obtain a 93 percent average.
Out of the 47 schools in the district, six obtained a 100 percent pass rate in 2017.
There were also several major improvements in the district, with the biggest coming from Concordia High School in Knysna and Zwartberg High School in Prince Albert. Both schools managed to increase their pass rate by about 20 percent. Concordia managed to obtain a 76.4 percent compared to last year’s 55.1 percent and Zwartberg achieved 89.7 percent compared to the previous year’s 69.2 percent.
Further afield in Plettenberg Bay at the Wittedrift High School, excited youngsters gathered at the school to receive their results. Although the school dropped down from its 100 percent pass rate from last year to 94.2 percent this year, it did not dampen the mood.
Principal Jeremy Marallich said despite the drop he was very proud of his school’s achievement and attributed the success to dedicated teachers, pupils who “want to do their part” and support from the Western Cape education department.
– African News Agency (ANA)
