Why are Matrics getting so many distinctions?

SUZANNE BELLING

The media is jammed packed with eye-opening matric results – three distinctions are often the norm – but it is not unusual to see learners attaining up to 11 distinctions and average marks by top achievers of over 90 per cent. In fact, in both National Senior Certificate and Independent Examination Board, some matriculants are even achieving up to 100 per cent, particularly in science and mathematics. Are they smarter than their parents and grandparents or are they simply putting in much more work? The SA Jewish Report questions principals and educationists about this.

Marc Falconer, principal of Herzlia High School in Cape Town, termed the matric exams “a bankrupt measure of an educational output”. He insists that the increased marks did not mean more employment; better GDP; more people equipped to start businesses or to think creatively or problem solve, or even to do better in tertiary study?  “Matric testing seems to be a summative assessment for a world that doesn’t actually require whatever skills the matric exams do elicit,” he says.

He confirms there was “grade inflation” and that there were far more distinctions achieved than in bygone years.

He cites political narrative as a dominant reason. “The government is invested in showing that there is an ongoing improvement in matric pass rates. Educational commentators have made the point that Umalusi, the Council for Quality Assurance in Further Education and Training, [I21] have inflated marks, for various reasons, one of which may be to improve the perception of government’s performance in this key area. This is in spite of the fact that South Africa, on international benchmarking scales such as Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS), is one of the worst performing countries in the world in literacy, maths and science.”

The country now has a school-based assessment mark, worth 25 percent of the final matric mark which allowed for a different engagement with subject matter and better individual responses and, consequently, better marks.

“Exam assessment has also changed (possibly this is more true for the IEB assessment than in the State assessment).” Assessing exams was a test for various levels of learning and engagement. “There is also more specialised teaching (and when they can be afforded, extra specific teaching, to ‘crack’ the exams. This is not to do with better learning, but rather a way of ‘working the system’.

“But in spite of the better matric marks, the stats for performance at university have dropped over the last years. The latest stats are that five years ago the dropout rate at university study was 59 per cent. The latest figure is 68 per cent even though the school pass and distinction rates have increased.

“Universities are increasingly using the national benchmarking tests to offer candidates a place at university and for international universities thinking skills tests or the SATs are used,” Falconer said.

Elliot Wolf, former principal of King David High School Linksfield, said the subject matter was more demanding and students wanted higher marks to enable them to gain admission to universities, especially in the faculty of medicine.

He adds that there are great changes in the marking standards, a situation that brought South African schools in line with other countries like Israel and the United States. This fact was clearly illustrated in earlier years when many families emigrated from South Africa and the students in these families entered overseas universities and colleges.  Many of them in a short time were listed on the Deans’ Honour lists, and this proved that our marking standards in the past were perhaps a little too stringent.

As a specialist in the humanities, Wolf said in previous years it was unheard of to obtain full marks for an English essay. “But today, the students are no longer required to write a creative essay under exam conditions, and have the advantage of help from knowledgeable outside sources. The final work is submitted to the teacher for recommendations and improvements and finally is assessed as a true indication of the students’ ability to express themselves in English. So, today, a really good essay could get full marks even though it is not a true reflection of the student’s efforts and literacy.”

Advanced programme subjects had been introduced in English and mathematics for students who were gifted in these subjects.

“Life orientation, a compulsory subject, is not an examination subject. The marks are based on the submission of essays involving research and other project work. Most of the better students gain an additional distinction in this subject.”

Previously most students were offered only six subjects for the matriculation exam, occasionally some taking seven. “Today it is not unusual for students to take eight, nine or 10 subjects.  This situation obviously lends itself to the multi-distinction candidates we read about every year when the matric results are released.”

He emphasised that that his comments were “simply my opinions to explain the plethora of distinction candidates in today’s school system.  

“May I offer a word of comfort to my former students and all the parents of today’s matriculants. Do not be embarrassed that your results were not as remarkable as those of your children.  Remember that you were just as intelligent, but were simply the products of a different, more conservative school system,” Wolf said. 

Denese Bloch, principal of Yeshiva College Boys’ and Girls’ High Schools, confirmed that over several years “we have seen a great increase in the number of distinctions attained by learners in their final matric results. 

“I am sure that there are a number of reasons for this. We are living in a much more competitive environment. Under the heinous, immoral and iniquitous apartheid system, a white skin and average marks were enough to guarantee one a place in university.

“No matter how good a learner’s marks were, if he were classified as black, coloured or Indian, he would not be admitted into most of the universities in the country. Today learners are competing against a much larger group and therefore have to achieve much better results in order to secure a place at university.”

This meant that learners set their goals much higher in previous years, Bloch said.

Rabbi Steven Krawitz, principal of Hirsch Lyons Boys’ and Girls’ High Schools, felt the increased number of distinctions obtained by learners was that there was more competition to enrol in universities today and to be accepted for prestigious courses, especially actuarial science, medicine and engineering.

This put learners and parents under pressure to generate better results.

“The syllabus has changed to include more – and students are going for extra lessons to be coached to do well in exams. The marking is not more lenient.”

Schools were preparing students for their final examinations – to the best of their ability – and the learners were working harder than they had decades ago.

“This is not only for themselves, but to bring honour to their school.”

Krawitz said syllabuses had changed to include more up-to-date material, especially for IEB.

“Skills for tertiary education have become a big component.”

He did not believe there was a drop in standards, but there was extra pressure on teachers and learners in the present system.