The Department of Basic Education (DBE) is administering the 2024 National Senior Certificate (NSC) exams.
Exams began on Monday, 21 October 2024. A total of 732,448 full-time and 136,195 part-time candidates are registered to write the 2024 NSC examinations.
The start of the matric exams has heightened attention on the pass requirements prompting questions for Basic Minister Siviwe Gwarube in Parliament.
Build One South Africa (BOSA) parliamentary member Nobuntu Webster questioned whether Minister Gwarube had considered raising the pass mark requirement from 30% to 50%.
Minister Gwarube says there is no immediate intention to raise the matric pass mark to 50%.
Presently, there are no immediate plans to change the 30% pass mark and to replace it with a minimum pass mark of 50%.
The Minister stressed the need for careful consideration and evidence-based policy decisions before any such changes.
Since assuming office in June 2024, the Minister has devoted time to fully understanding the challenges confronting the Basic Education sector, including consulting with provincial MECs, their management teams, and various stakeholders to gain first-hand information on the issues confronting provincial education departments.
The Minister announced her intention to appoint an advisory council. This council will be tasked with examining the curriculum, identifying necessary interventions, and benchmarking South Africa's education system against international best practices.
"This council will be able to look at how best we strengthen the curriculum; what interventions are needed and how best to benchmark our performance with international best practice."
The 2024 matric results will be announced on 15 January 2025 by Gwarube and will thereafter be released at exam centres on 16 January 2025.
