Quality assurance body Umalusi has given the go-ahead for the release of the 2024 year-end exam results administered by SA’s four assessment bodies.
This clears the way for the basic education department and the Independent Examinations Board (IEB) to release the national senior certificate (NSC) results for the class of 2024 later on Monday.
Umalusi said no systemic irregularities had been detected in the NSC exams, but expressed concern at the almost 8% absenteeism rate among students who registered for those administered by the basic education department.
Only 810,900 of the 880,209 candidates who registered to write the NSC examinations under the basic education department managed to write their papers, meaning 69,309, or 7.9%, of the total were absent, said Umalusi. Many of these students had been prevented from sitting their exams, it said.
“Umalusi is concerned at the persistent phenomenon of teachers and principals refusing to allow registered learners to write examinations in particular subjects. Anecdotally, this practice is motivated by the desire to improve results. This is unlawful and Umalusi advised the affected learners and parents or guardians to report such incidents to the relevant authorities,” said Umalusi CEO CEO Mafu Rakometsi.
A total of 1.06-million candidates wrote examinations at the end of 2024, said Umalusi. These included examinations administered by the basic education department, IEB, the department of higher education and training, and the Southern African Comprehensive Assessment Institute.
Most students (832,993) wrote the NSC exams; 138,000 candidates wrote the National Certificate Vocational level 2-4 exams; 49,421 students wrote the N2-N3 exams; and 40,438 candidates wrote the General Education and Training Certificate: Adult Basic Education and Training (GETC: ABET) exams.
Umalusi council chairperson Yunus Ballim said the organisation was also concerned about the high rate of absenteeism among candidates who registered to write the GETC: ABET examinations.
Rakometsi said all four assessment bodies had detected and reported cases of malpractice or cheating, including 365 N2-N3 candidates in the private college sector. There were fewer detected cases of cheating in the NSC exams administered by the department of basic education in 2024 than in 2023, but Umalusi remained “seriously concerned” that KwaZulu-Natal and Mpumalanga were once again the worst offenders, he said. A total of 195 candidates were implicated in cheating in KwaZulu-Natal and 74 in Mpumalanga.
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