2017-01-04Staff Report 2 Windhoek Many parents have expressed gratitude towards teachers for having shown great dedication and commitment, which resulted in thousands of Grade 10 learners qualifying for Grade 11 this year. Although many Namibians were pessimistic that learners - especially Grade 10 and 12s - would not make it due to last year’s national teachers’ strike, which saw examinations disrupted and abruptly cancelled, but the teachers and learners proved them wrong. Out of 38 240 candidates who wrote their Grade 10 examinations in 2016, 21 291 qualified for admission to Grade 11 this year, representing 55.7 percent of the learners who qualified for Grade 11. Martha Shekunyenga said she got a shock of her life when she saw her son’s Grade 10 result. He scored a whopping 40 points at Negumbo Senior Secondary School. She said she did not expect her son to perform so well in the wake of the teachers’ strike during the Grade 10 and 12 national exams. She applauded the teachers for their hard work and dedication albeit during difficult times, such as the protracted negotiations for an 8 percent increment, which eventually resulted in government agreeing to a 5 percent increase. Parent Simon Shikongo also expressed gratitude towards teachers for their hard work, as his child passed with 35 points in Grade 10 and encouraged teachers to continue working hard to ensure learners excel and become productive citizens of the country. Minister of Education, Arts and Culture Katrina Hanse-Himarwa on December 20 announced the 2016 national results of Grade 10 and grade Namibia Senior Secondary Certificate (NSSC) higher level. Last year, about 38 240 full-time Grade 10 candidates sat for their national examinations. The minister announced that learners performed very well in Life Science for Grade 10 and Mathematics higher level for Grade 12, which were postponed due to the industrial dispute between teachers and government. She said the number of candidates qualifying for admission to Grade 11 this year might increase to approximately 24 291, as part-time learners add subjects over a couple of years and normally meet the admission requirement to Grade 11 only after a number of years. On average, since 1993, the percentage of learners qualifying for admission has increased steadily from 37.2 percent to 55.7 percent this year. The minister also revealed that the 2016 Grade 10 results show a improved performance among candidates at higher grades A to E and poorer performance at the lower grades F and G. ‘This is a clear indication that the 2016 results are much better, as most candidates were able to obtain higher grades when compared to the 2015 results. The good performance of the 2016 candidates is also supported by a decrease of the ungraded entries from 2.9 percent in 2015 to 2.4 percent in 2016. “In summary the 2016 Grade 10 results are much better in terms of performance when compared to the 2015 results,” the minister alluded. The Grade 12 exams are taken at two levels: NSC higher and ordinary level. The finalisation of the NSSC ordinary results (full-time and part-time) will be released on January 13. The ministry announced that in 2016, a total of 14 743 of the 65 863 Grade 12 learners (full-time and part-time combined) took one or more NSSC higher level subjects. Compared to the 2015 results, the 2016 results show that the percentage of candidates obtaining grades 2,3 and 4 has risen compared to 2015, although the learners obtaining grade 1 decreased by -0.1 percent. “It should also be noted that the graded entries did increase from 95.3 percent in 2015 to 95.5 percent in 2016, which is supported by a decrease in the ungraded entries from 4.7 percent in 2015 to 4.5 percent in 2016,” Minister Hanse-Himarwa noted. 2017-01-04Staff Report 2
