KwaZulu-Natal students among top matric achievers of 2022 despite load-shedding
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Loading... - Sophia Aurince
- 30 Jan 2023
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Mthokosizi Nkomo, who attended Impiyamandla High School in Etshenilenduna, and Sinakhokonke Siyaya, from Phendukani High School in Newcastle, both in KwaZulu-Natal, are among the top achievers in the matric class of 2022.
Mthokosizi, 18, obtained distinctions in all of the seven subjects he wrote, claiming first place in the physical science category nationally.
Mthokosizi, who plans to study medicine at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, said he was still in disbelief about his results, which he achieved despite having to contend with frequent, crippling power black outs by power utility Eskom during his final year in school.
“The only real challenge I encountered during the matric year was load-shedding. It was hard juggling my school work and doing chores at home because of power cuts,” he said.
Seventeen-year-old Sinakhokonke, who got eight distinctions in the high school-ending examinations, will also pursue a degree in medicine, but at the University of Cape Town.
“When I saw my results, I could not believe that I could get 100% in accounting because I had been struggling with it during the year. Matric was very hectic for me because of the limited time and having to be at school for seven days,” she said.
Last week, Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga announced that the matric class of 2022 achieved a national pass rate of 80.1% in the National Senior Certificate (NSC) exams, a 3.7 percentage point improvement from 76.4% the previous year.
The chairperson of parliament’s portfolio committee on basic education, Bongiwe Mbinqo-Gigaba, welcomed the marked improvement, saying it was encouraging “especially in the context of the impact of Covid-19 on the 2022 cohort’s experience of teaching and learning”. Read More…
