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The Independent Examinations Board (IEB) has announced a 98.92% matric pass rate for 2018.
Various social media platforms were flooded with congratulatory messages to the matric class of 2018 following the 0.16% pass rate increase from 2017.
The IEB, an independent assessment agency and curriculum used mainly by private schools, released its matric results on Thursday morning with a record pass rate comparable to 2017’s pass rate of 98.76%.
The IEB also released its Commendable Achievement List – those students who achieved within the top 5% in five subjects nationally – which included students from Roedean School, Beaulieu College and St John’s College, among others. According to the IEB, those with outstanding IEB achievements – students within the top 5% in 6 or more subjects – were from schools such as Brescia House and Lebone II College of the Royal Bafokeng.
According to Paul Edey, executive headmaster at St John’s College, the 141 matriculants at the school achieved 433 distinctions during the 2018 IEB exams.
“More than 40% of the St John’s class of 2018 achieved an academic average of at least 80%. Seventy-one percent of our students achieved at least 70%,” he said.
With five St John’s College students on the IEB top achievers list, Edey, who has held the position of executive headmaster at the school since 2014, said they could not be more proud.
“The excellence of the all-round education offered at St John’s was highlighted by the exceptional results in dramatic arts, where 31 out of 33 candidates achieved distinctions. 15 out of 22 students achieved distinctions in information technology and eight out of nine students in French achieved an A,” he said.
“In particular we congratulate Raymond Barrow,
Matthew Chamberlin, Zander Drotskie and Benjamin Macqueen who have made the IEB Commendable Achievement List.”
According to IEB chief executive, Anne Oberholzer, all candidates who passed achieved a pass that is good enough to enter a tertiary institution at one of the three levels.
“90.65% of the cohort achieved entry to degree study, 7.33% qualified for entry to diploma study and 0.95% achieved entry for study at the higher certificate level,” she said.
This is compared to 88.50%, 8.95% and 1.30% respectively in the previous year.
Oberholzer said that the increase in the percentage pass rate for entry to bachelor degree studies can be attributed to the removal of the list of designated subjects.
“Previously, in addition to the normal pass requirements for the National Senior Cerificate, the attainment of 50% or more in a minimum of 4 designated subjects was required for entry to degree study. In 2018, the list of designated subjects was removed. Learners must still get 50% in a minimum of 4 subjects; however the 50% requirement can apply to any subject excluding Life Orientation,” she explained.
The change was effected in March 2018 following criticism of the designated subject list, with the key critique being that it excluded subjects that should have been included and distorted selection by learners.
Oberholzer said that, “The IEB had 11 514 full-time and 858 part-time candidates in Grade 12 in 2018, registered at 249 IEB examination venues across the country, Mozambique, Namibia and Swaziland.”
The number of learners who sat for their examinations increased from 12 130 in 2017 to 12 372 in 2018. Gauteng had the highest number of learners with 6 674 students and the Northern Cape had the least number of IEB learners with only 32.
The closing date for the application for re-marking is January 10 and those results will be released on February 6. The closing date for learner’s who wish to enrol for the supplementary examination is February 15.
The National Senior Certificate (NSC) results will be announced by Minister of Basic Education Angie Motshekga this evening.
