Should SA have one type of Matric examination?
Should all Grade 12 pupils in South Africa be made to write the National Senior Certificate? Have your say...
South African scholars are at liberty to write the National Senior Certificate (NSC) or the Independent Examinations Board (IEB) examinations, depending on the school they attend.
According to the former Gauteng MEC for Education, Panyasa Lesufi, all learners in South Africa should be made to write one examination.
He took to X on Monday to state that he feels the two examinations show a division of class.
The former MEC, who now serves as the Premier of Gauteng, argues that all matriculants, regardless of the type of examination they took, will receive the same tertiary education where they will write the same examinations.
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"One country, one matric examination. In few weeks time all our matriculants will be in the same lecture rooms in the same varsity or college. Why are they still writing different matric exams as IEB or NSC is a matter that must be attended to," he wrote on X.
"Everything is the same beside the name of the exam. The pass mark is the same. The curriculum is the same. The standard bearer is the same (UMALUSI)," he argued.
Lesufi said the two exams should be scrapped and schools should follow the example of higher institutions where all learners write the same exams regardless of their class.
"We can’t continue to separate exams on the basis of class. The rich, semi rich and poor having different matric examinations. All our children should write the same examination like they do at universities or colleges. It’s about time," he concluded his post.
READ: Umalusi approves release of 2023 matric results
His post received mixed reaction on social media.
Below are some of them:
Do away with the 30% pass rate first. Names of the exams don't matter more than the quality of education. Respect South Africans. 30% is nonsense.
And you telling us so we must do what? Are we in a position to can make a change that you failed to make?
What will this change? Will it help under-resourced schools provide a functional education to children? Leave success alone and assist those struggling to get the basics. Without being able to achieve that, talk sounds like an attempt to distract from failures.
They are definitely not the same Panyaza. IEB students are competitive globally. With your exam only about 10% of them will make it to university. Most will be having 30%s in those matric certificates and adding to youth unemployment and some will end in drug addictions due to lack of opportunities resulting from poor governance.
One country, one matric examination. In few weeks time all our matriculants will be in the same lecture rooms in the same varsity or college. Why are they still writing different matric exams as IEB or NSC is a matter that must be attended to. Everything is the same beside the…
— Panyaza Lesufi (@Lesufi) January 15, 2024
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