The 2004 matric class has achieved a pass rate of more than 70% for the third year in a row, Education Minister Naledi Pandor announced on Wednesday.
The official results in eight provinces were released by Pandor and education department officials during a media briefing at Parliament, but the results in Mpumalanga have been withheld because some are under investigation.
The investigation centres on allegations of fraud involving at least 2000 papers written in this year’s examinations in the province.
Examination controlling body Umalusi has announced that Mpumalanga’s matric results will be withheld until at least the second week in January — by when the probe is expected to be completed.
The 71,4% pass rate for the eight provinces was slightly lower than last year’s pass rate of 74,4%, but the number of candidates who were successful this year, 307 804, was higher than last year’s 299 792.
Education department director-general Thami Mseleku maintained the final figures were not expected to vary by more than about one percentage point after Mpumalanga’s results were included. About seven percent of all candidates wrote their exams in the province.
Pandor said while it was regrettable 38 162 full-time candidates in Mpumalanga would not get their results on Wednesday, she supported Umalusi’s decision to withhold the results until a full investigation had run its course.
She would make sure the toughest measures were brought to bear on the guilty parties if it were proved officials had been involved in colluding in exam fraud.
Pandor said the 2004 results also achieved an increase in the number of matric exemptions, more maths and science HG passes, and increased participation of girls.
The provincial pass rates announced were: Western Cape 85%, Northern Cape 83,4%, Free State 78,7%, Gauteng 76,8%, KwaZulu-Natal 74,0%, Limpopo 70,6%, North West 64,9%, and Eastern Cape 53,5%.
Pandor said there were more passes in maths (22 860) and science (25 539) at the higher grade in 2004 than in 2003, and this was an indication the department’s national strategy to improve these subjects was beginning to bear fruit.
Regarding equity, she said there was an increase in the participation of girls, from 148 577 in 2001 to 233 206 in 2004 (the latter excluding Mpumalanga), representing 54,1% of all candidates who wrote the exam.
”This increased participation has been matched by an increase in the pass rate of girls over the years. In 2004, 70,4% of girls passed in the eight provinces (boys 72,7%)”.
There was also an increase in the number of candidates with university exemption.
Of the total number of candidates who sat for the 2004 exam, 18,7% obtained university exemptions (19,2% in 2003) — excluding Mpumalanga in both years for comparative purposes.
”Even though the 2004 rate at 18,7% is slightly down on 2003, the absolute number of candidates eligible for admission to universities in the eight provinces has increased to 80 477, an increase from 59 537 in 1999 that is equivalent to an annual increase of 4 000 young people annually since 1999.”
Pandor also announced that Umalusi was satisfied the exam was well conducted and the results were fair and credible, with the exception of the withheld Mpumalanga results.
Umalusi had indicated the standard of the national question papers, written by up to 90% of all candidates, had improved significantly over 2003. – Sapa