Minister of Basic Education Ange Motshekga said the matric examination that started on 30 October with over 700,000 full-time and 181 143 part-time candidates sitting for their final year exams, went smoothly. This is as matriculants enter their last week of the National Senior Certificate (NSC) examinations with only six exams left.
Briefing the media yesterday in Pretoria, Motshekga said her department did all it could to ensure the exams went smoothly. "We can confirm that indeed these exams went well. By Friday the 1st of December, we were on day 25 and we are only left with three days to finish the exams. Up to date, 225 papers have been written. We are only left with six papers before we finish the exams. We are very grateful to all stakeholders who have played a role in making sure that we run these exams as well as we did," the minister said. She added that the department always aims to conduct their exams error-free and uphold the integrity of our certificate. "We did all we could do to support the children. We provided them with materials to support them and we know provinces and schools went out of their way to have matric camps and all the necessary support that our learners needed," she said.
Despite the minister claiming it has been smooth sailing, there have been incidents of adults and university students caught writing exams on behalf of learners. On the first day of the exams, a man was arrested at Newcastle's Phendukani Full Service High School when an invigilator discovered that he was writing a matric paper on behalf of a part-time student. In Pietermaritzburg, two university students aged 22 and 23 were arrested at the Drill Hall examination Centre after they allegedly tried to write an Economics paper for two matric learners. The police said that the two, a man and a woman, were charging R1000 per subject to write exams for matriculants. In Mpumalanga, two men were arrested also trying to write exams for grade 12 learners at two different schools.
Motshekga warned the matriculants to stay safe as they celebrate the end of exams. "There are lots of disturbing incidents that we see on social media. We appeal to our kids to avoid this. We have noted with concern learners hosting and attending what they call ?pens down' parties all over the show. What is clear is that as much as it is the time for celebrating, hundreds of our children are overindulging in alcohol, binge drinking and even finding themselves [against] the law," she warned. Motshekga also urged parents, communities and caregivers to support their kids to stay safe and grow," she said.
