Early reports by Prof John Volmink, Chairman of Umalusi that the 2015 matric results are worse than that of 2014 must be cause for concern.
“The Inkatha Freedom Party has always raised its concern with regards to forced progression of learners through the grades even they do not perform well together with issues such as mass copying, leaking of exam papers, lowering of pass requirements and the credibility of some invigilators. It is disconcerting to hear that there has been mass copying again but it should not come as a surprise because, even though we demanded to know the outcome of the 2014 investigations, we were not given clarity on what steps will be taken to prevent a recurrence of such dishonesty. In KwaZulu-Natal, MEC Peggy Nkonyeni gave the assurance that all security measures were in place to prevent cheating. But we knew that this MEC is not on top of what is going on in her department and now there is further evidence of her incompetence”, said Hon Blessed Gwala MPL, IFP Leader in the KwaZulu-Natal Legislature.
“The lower pass rate will again see thousands of young people facing a bleak future with little chance of employment. Many of these learners should never have been in matric because of their poor performance in the lower grades. The fact that 66 000 of the matric class of 2015 were learners who were forced into matric must send a clear indication that the progression of learners is a flawed practice that should never be allowed to continue. It is time that the Department of Education engages with educators at grassroots level to ascertain the problems being faced in the classroom with a view to finding plausible solutions to the crisis we are facing as a nation. We thank the examiners, markers and all officials for ensuring that the results will be announced next Tuesday”, concluded Hon Gwala.
