School heads thank matric kit for better exam results

PRINCIPALS at several schools in Nelson Mandela Bay said they had noted a marked improvement in their matriculants' results since introducing The Herald's Matric Survival Kit.

The educational supplement is distributed to 5000 pupils at schools around Nelson Mandela Bay with the assistance of General Motors SA.

Masiphathisane High School in Motherwell saw a pass rate increase of nearly 10 percentage points, from 73.6% last year to 82.1% this year.

Principal Mzoli Maarman attributed the success to hard work and determination by both pupils and staff.

"It feels really good and we are extremely proud of our class of 2014."

"I will definitely advise other schools to use this because at the end of the day you can see the difference it makes. Every innovation helps a little.

"Our thanks go to the General Motors Foundation and the Telkom and Vodacom foundations for the assistance they have provided to our teachers and our school," Maarman said.

Paterson High School principal Sivan Pillay said the school had also seen a higher matric pass rate. from 77.8% last year to 80.6% this year.

He said he hoped to see a continued increase this year, as the Schauderville school celebrates its 90th anniversary.

"These supplements also helped a lot because the teachers used them in class. I would recommend them to schools that lack resources."

In Uitenhage, Strelitzia High School's matric pass rate rose from 89.7% last year to 91.5% this year.

Principal André Oosthuizen said: "I cannot tell you how proud I am of our result. Very few people understand how our school has transformed over the years - from a white girls' Afrikaans-speaking school to a 95% black English-speaking school.

"We have shown that with that kind of transformation you can still achieve great results."

He said every additional tool made a difference, and the matric survival kit was one of them.

"We used the survival kit and also put in extra classes and Saturday classes, and brought people from outside to assist. It really shows."

Woolhope High School principal Julian Govender was "pleasantly surprised" with his school's pass rate rise, from 77.5% last year to 83.1% this year.

"I thought [the new syllabus] would be tougher, but 40% of [our matrics] received exemptions.

"We have also seen more As this year which I think was due to the matric survival kit."

 - Lee-Anne Butler