Basic Education Dept clarifies '20% pass mark' reports
The Department of Basic Education has issued a statement clarifying its decision to promote learners who do not meet the requisite mathematics requirements to be promoted to the next grade in the senior phase.
Last week, the department announced that learners in grades 7 to 9 will be promoted to the next grade even if they failed mathematics.
"There is no such thing as a 20% pass mark for mathematics and there has been no change in the progression policy to reflect such," the department said in a statement.
In the past, if you failed a language you would fail the year. You could fail mathematics and still pass the year if you passed your languages with above 40%.
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After the introduction of the new curriculum known as CAPS requirements changed and the department of basic education raised the bar in terms of the pass criteria.
In addition to passing your two language subjects you have to pass one of them i.e. home language at minimum 50% and you have to pass mathematics at minimum 40%.
In essence what the policy states is that even if you pass all of your other subjects with distinctions, but got less than 40% for mathematics you failed the year.
"We are all aware that not everyone is mathematically inclined. Some people are more inclined towards the arts, others are better with technical subjects making this policy unfair to those who are forced to take mathematics but are not good at it," the department said.
The department has now taken its policy under review after concerns that learners who could go to the next grade based on meeting all other pass criteria were being held back in the grade unnecessarily.
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"It has been shown that grade repetition can lead to increased school dropout, increased truancy and a number of other adverse effects," the department said.
While the policy is under review a decision was taken to promot learners who passed all the subjects except Mathematics.
"That is if they met all other pass requirements and obtained more than 20% in mathematics," the department said.
This decision is only applicable to senior phase learners and only applicable for the 2016 cohort of learners while we are at this point of policy review.