Minister of basic education Siviwe Gwarube has debunked the popular myth that 30% is the matric pass mark.
“We must put this stubborn myth to rest,” she says, adding that the National Senior Certificate (NSC) is earned by meeting minimum requirements across a full subject package – including higher thresholds in key subjects, with different pass types that open different pathways after school.
Learners need to achieve the right marks in the right subjects in the NSC exams to gain entry into their preferred programme at a higher education level, she adds.
“The point is this: Slogans or percentages alone will not improve learner outcomes,” Gwarube says. “It is whether our standards, progression and support across the whole schooling journey add up to real readiness.”
She adds that this is why the National Education and Training Council (NETC), established last year for the first time, is reviewing assessment and progression policies across Grades R to 12, so that expectations are clear, support happens earlier, and learning gaps do not compound until learners arrive in matric.
“Raising the bar in Grade 12 imposes a moral obligation to strengthen the foundations: school readiness, early learning, reading for meaning by age 10, and early numeracy,” Gwarube comments.
“When we speak about the NSC, we must therefore resist viewing it as a single moment in time. Matric is not an event – it is a journey that spans more than a decade.”