The National Senior Certificate (NSC) matric results have been released. Almost 800 000 learners passed the exam, bringing the overall pass rate to a record-breaking 81.3% across the country.
Reports suggest that this has been the highest matric pass rate the country has had since the dawn of our democracy. Compared to the 2018 matric exam results, all 9 provinces have shown improvement. The Daily Maverick reported that “The jump suggests inequalities in education may be reducing”. Although the Eastern Cape results are among the bottom three, the province has shown the most improvement, with the pass rate increasing by 5.9% more than the previous year.
Here is a list of 2019 matric pass rates, arranged from highest to lowest percentage:
Free State: 88.4%
Gauteng: 87.2%
North West: 86.8%
Western Cape: 82.3%
KwaZulu-Natal: 81.3%
Mpumalanga: 80.3%
Eastern Cape: 76.5%
Northern Cape: 76.5%
Limpopo: 73.2%
A total of 12 597 students wrote the Independent Education Board (IEB) exams for private schools. The results were released yesterday and boast an overall pass rate of 98.82%, down by only 0.10% since the 98.92% pass rate achieved in 2018. According to News24, the CEO of IEB, Anne Oberholzer said in a statement that “89.51% qualified for entry to study a degree, while 7.91% qualified for entry to study a diploma and 1.4% for studying at the Higher Certificate level”.
There is still hope for students who failed the exams or wish to obtain better marks. For IEB students, Business Live reports that “The closing date to apply for remarking is January 13 and the results from remarking will be released on February 6.”, while the closing date for NSC remark applications is 22 January, at a cost of R112 per subject. Supplementary examinations will no longer take place in February/March, but will instead take place in May/June, giving learners more time to prepare. The closing date for supplementary exam applications is 31 January.
