Following celebrations over the record pass rate for the 2025 Matric exams, education analysts are calling for a closer look at what these outcomes really signify for the Western Cape.
While high pass rates are often seen as evidence of effective education delivery, analysts are questioning whether the figures can be misleading.
Speaking to VOC News, Professor Mbulu Madiba, Dean of the Faculty of Education and a teacher and an analyst in teacher literacy, said this phenomenon is not uncommon.
“You have schools doing well, mostly privileged, and you have schools lacking resources in underprivileged areas with poorer performances. Western Cape, in line with various communities including those on the Cape Flats, may underperform and struggle to get one bachelor’s pass while schools in the affluent areas gets 100% bachelors,” explained Madiba.
“In the presentation of the matric results of 2025, the minister did not shy away from this inequality, but the fact that there’s inequality does not mean we should not celebrate those doing well,” he noted.
*Listen to the full interview here.
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