VIDEO: Matric class of 2020 achieves a 76.2% pass rate

What does the annual matric pass rate actually tell us about learners’ pathways through school, particularly during a pandemic? Zero Dropout Campaign Programme Director Merle Mansfield speaks to eNCA anchor Tumelo Mothotoane about this issue. Mansfield says that the matric pass rate only tells us about the percentage of learners who wrote their exams and passed, but it does not tell us what percentage of the cohort of learners who started in Grade 1 actually made it to matric and passed. Before the pandemic, around 2 out of 5 children who started Grade 1 dropped out before completing matric as a consequence of disruptions in their homes, schools and communities.