Anatomy of South African decay

The racial breakdown of the 2007 matriculation results, released by the Department of Education last month, provide an important insight into the cause and extent of the crisis currently facing South Africa. The Department points out these statistics "cannot be regarded as completely reliable" based as they are on self-reporting. There are pupils who refuse to classify themselves by race and others who misclassify themselves by mistake. Last year, apparently, numerous Indian and black pupils erroneously classified themselves as ‘Asian.'

Last year 591,251 pupils wrote the government matric, 386,051 (65,3%) passed, and 89,838 (15,1%) passed with exemption - the minimum grade needed to progress on to university. In absolute terms more pupils passed, including with exemption, than ever before. However, there was a small decline in both the pass and exemption rates. See Table 3. In assessing the overall state of education one also needs to factor in the 7632 pupils at independent schools who wrote the separate IEB exams: 7283 passed (98,9%) and 5780 (78,5%) passed with exemption. See Table 4.

When one breaks these figures down by race, they reveal how little progress has actually been made since the end of apartheid in extending quality education to disadvantaged black and Coloured South Africans.

Last year 277,941 (60,6%) of black pupils passed matric. This is a doubling of the number who passed in 1991 and it represents a fifty percent increase in the pass rate. However, when one looks at the exemption rate this bright picture dims considerably. 49,950 black pupils passed the government matric with exemption last year, up from 30,389 in 1991. However, the exemption rate (10,9%) is no different now to what it was then. See tables 1 & 2. The Eastern Cape had the worst pass rate for black pupils (54%) as well as the worst exemption rate (6,9%). This lack of improvement has been achieved despite the equalisation of funding for school children; the integration of formerly white, Coloured, and Indian schools; and, the end of the politically inspired disruption of schooling by the ANC and its allies.

The statistics for the 34,741 Coloured pupils who wrote the government matric suggest that something catastrophic has happened to education in the Coloured community since the ANC came to power. The pass rate for these pupils has dropped from 82.8% in 1991 to 78% last year. More worryingly, only 15,4% (5367) of the  these pupils passed with exemption. This represents a decline of almost a third in the exemption rate from 1991 when it stood at 21,9%.

These statistics suggest that, outside of Model C and independent schools, black and Coloured pupils are being deprived quality education; without which they cannot progress into the professions or compete with the children of the middle classes.

The pass rates for Indian and white pupils are largely unchanged from 1991, although the number of white pupils writing the government matric has now declined by over a third. The matric exemption rate for Indian pupils has increased from 49,5% in 1991 to 55.2% last year. For white pupils it has increased from 41,5% to 52%. This increase is largely a reflection of the softening of standards in the new matric relative to the old one.

While white and Indian pupils are still able to access reasonably good education through the school system, as soon as they leave matric they are faced with a wall of state-sponsored racial discrimination. In 2001 the racial composition of the population was estimated at 79% black, 8,9% Coloured, 9,6% white, and 2,5% Indian. The intention of the ANC is that every sphere of human activity in South Africa, at every level, should conform to these proportions. Racial discrimination is regarded as necessary and justified until demographic representivity has been achieved everywhere. As the party's 2007 Strategy & Tactics states, the need for such measures will only decline when "all centres of power and influence and other critical spheres of social endeavour become broadly representative of the country's demographics."

The effect of these measures, ever more strictly applied, is to prevent young Indian and particularly white South Africans from pursuing their ambitions in the land of their birth. What this means is that the country either loses these youth to other countries or refuses to take full advantage of the abilities of those that remain. South Africa thus deprives itself of many of its best and brightest minds. White and Indian pupils made up 9,5% of all those who wrote the government matric in 2007, 14,1% of those who passed it, 33,1% of those who passed with exemption, 42,2% of those who passed with merit, and 77,5% of those who passed with distinction.

In the early 1990s it was known that there would be a shortage of at least half a million skilled workers - ‘professional, technical, highly skilled, executive and managerial' - by the end of the decade. The ANC responded to this challenge by creating a truly perverse system. On the one hand it has fostered a dysfunctional school system which prevents most pupils from realising their real potential through education. On the other hand it refuses to utilise the skills and talents of many of those that do manage to gain a decent education because they are of the ‘wrong' colour. It is a system to the benefit of no-one but a hyper-privileged ruling elite; which has fixed the rules to ensure that they do not have to compete with individuals from either the racial minorities or the still disadvantaged majority.

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Education Do you really think this government has the ability to get anything right? We should have adopted the British education system and we need to fix the discipline problem in the class. It is not a money issue but a poor management and misguided policy issue. by Pangea on March 04 2008, 08:01 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

Race & representivity Since blacks comprised 43.5% of '91 university exemptions and 55% of 2007 exemptions, anything above this number in university enrollment, boardroom & senior management appointments, numbers of black CAs and other measures obsessed on by Manyi, Mbeki, . .more Qunta, Quelane and their ilk should be regarded as over-representive. Could Moneyweb please obtain their comment. . .less by Racist in ANCspeak = 1 who disagrees on March 04 2008, 08:14 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

Comments on racism Michael Richards better known as Kramer from tv's Seinfeld, does make a good point. This was his defense speech in court after making racial comments in his comedy act. He makes some very interesting points. I'm Proud To Be . .more White Someone finally said it. How many are actually paying attention to this? There are African Americans, Mexican Americans, Asian Americans, Arab Americans, etc. And then there are just Americans. You pass me on the street and sneer in my direction. You Call me 'White boy,' 'Cracker,' 'Honkey,' 'Whitey,' 'Caveman' ... and that's OK. But when I call you, N*****, Kike, Towel head, Sand-N*****, Camel Jockey, Beaner, Gook, or Chink ... You call me a racist. You say that whites commit a lot of violence against you, so why are the ghettos the most dangerous places to live? You have the United Negro College Fund. You have Martin Luther King Day. You have Black History Month. You have Cesar Chavez Day. You have Yom Hashoah. You have Ma'uled Al-Nabi. You have the NAACP. You have BET. If we had WET (White Entertainment Television) we'd be racists. If we had a White Pride Day, you would call us racists. If we had White History Month , we'd be racists. If we had any organization for only whites to 'advance' OUR lives we'd be racists. We have a Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, a Black Chamber of Commerce, and then we just have the plain Chamber of Commerce. Wonder who pays for that? A white woman could not be in the Miss Black American pageant, but any color can be in the Miss America pageant. If we had a college fund that only gave white students scholarships you know we'd be racists. There are over 60 openly proclaimed Black Colleges in the US. Yet if there were 'White colleges' THAT would be a racist college. In the Million Man March, you believed that you were marching for your race and rights. If we marched for our race and rights, you would call us racists. You are proud to be black, brown, yellow and orange, and you're not afraid to announce it. But when we announce our white pride, you call us racists. You rob us, carjack us, and shoot at us. But, when a white police officer shoots a black gang member or beats up a black drug-dealer running from the law and posing a threat to society, you call him a racist. I am proud. But you call me a racist. Why is it that only whites can be racists? . .less by Hizzona da Mare on March 05 2008, 12:57 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

ILLITERATE IT IS POLICY OF ALL AFRICAN GOVERNMENTS TO KEEP ELECTORATE ILLITERATE AS IT IS INTELIGENCE AND KNOWLEDGE THAT MAKES PEOPLE QUESTION THINGS. THEREFORE IGNORANCE IS BLISS AND THEN WHAT RUBBISH YOU TELL THE PEOPLE THEY WILL BELIEVE AS THEY KNOW NO BETTER. SO . .more POOR STANDARD OF EDUCATION IS NECESSARY FOR THE ELITISTS TO STAY IN POWER. . .less by ILLITERATE on March 04 2008, 08:19 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

What can you expect from your MAMPARAS Lazy good for nothings ......its only one way for south africa and thats DOWN by RUS on March 04 2008, 09:08 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

holy hell what an interpretation so blacks and coloreds perform badly due to "being deprived" but whites perform well due to "softening of standards"?!? what racist, slated, steaming pile of horse!@#$ if i say whites and blacks and colored all perform in line with their . .more natural ability that is as racist, but at least more accurate than this hogwash . .less by WTF?!? on March 04 2008, 09:41 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

What does the research say on this subject? Do yourselves a favour and read what the latest research says on this. Of course, the answer will be considered politically incorrect, maybe even racist. My sincere apologies if reality does not correspond with what some people wish to . .more believe: http://psychology.uwo.ca/faculty/rushtonpdfs/2006%20PSnew.pdf . .less by Darwin on March 04 2008, 10:31 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

Darwin... the argument put forward is that IQ results may be skewed by language / cultural factors by Charlie Chaplin on March 04 2008, 17:42 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

sounds like euphemisms to me... by Euphemism on March 05 2008, 07:24 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

..and the very latest research, specifically on SA university students http://psychology.uwo.ca/faculty/rushtonpdfs/2008%20PAID.pdf by Darwin on March 04 2008, 10:38 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

Question re: white matrics If there was a drop of 1/3 in white matriculants and there are only approx 7.000 students doing IEB where did the balance of the white students go to? by Charlie Chaplin on March 04 2008, 10:59 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

To New Zealand.... by Joe on March 04 2008, 12:28 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

What makes Finnish kids so smart? Refer to this Wall Street Journal article by Ellen Gamerman, as published here on Moneyweb. The Finish system does well when compared with the education systems of all other nations, and the reason is simple: the difference is not money or . .more Government intervention. What makes the Finish system produce is a ubiquitous supply of QUALITY TEACHERS. The quality of teachers in turn reflects the quality of society. There is nothing this government can do to create quality teachers. Our black population has never had a culture of nurturing knowledge and building intellectual capital. It therefore does not have the basis to teach… the natural desire by society to develop itself intellectually. It simply does not have people who want to teach and who at the same time love knowledge. It is a cultural problem that the Afro-Optimist cannot resolve without abandoning the beliefs of Afro-Optimism. We value not knowledge and therefore we are uneducated barbarians. Perhaps the first step to developing our people would be to stop shielding them from the very harsh realities that they are primitive and that their underdevelopment is not the fault of anyone but their own culture and worldview. . .less by Jack on March 04 2008, 12:05 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

The Eurocentric colonial oppressors curriculim is to blame. Mat-mat-tics and fist-cull-signs are too hard. Why must we len these nonsense. We want mo struggle hestree and pol-tic-all signs. Pass won pass awl. by Enoch Ulation on March 04 2008, 14:50 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

So just who is a racist??? Michael Richards better known as Kramer from tv's Seinfeld, does make a good point. This was his defense speech in court after making racial comments in his comedy act. He makes some very interesting points. I'm Proud To Be . .more White Someone finally said it. How many are actually paying attention to this? There are African Americans, Mexican Americans, Asian Americans, Arab Americans, etc. And then there are just Americans. You pass me on the street and sneer in my direction. You Call me 'White boy,' 'Cracker,' 'Honkey,' 'Whitey,' 'Caveman' ... and that's OK. But when I call you, N*****, Kike, Towel head, Sand-N*****, Camel Jockey, Beaner, Gook, or Chink ... You call me a racist. You say that whites commit a lot of violence against you, so why are the ghettos the most dangerous places to live? You have the United Negro College Fund. You have Martin Luther King Day. You have Black History Month. You have Cesar Chavez Day. You have Yom Hashoah. You have Ma'uled Al-Nabi. You have the NAACP. You have BET. If we had WET (White Entertainment Television) we'd be racists. If we had a White Pride Day, you would call us racists. If we had White History Month , we'd be racists. If we had any organization for only whites to 'advance' OUR lives we'd be racists. We have a Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, a Black Chamber of Commerce, and then we just have the plain Chamber of Commerce. Wonder who pays for that? A white woman could not be in the Miss Black American pageant, but any color can be in the Miss America pageant. If we had a college fund that only gave white students scholarships you know we'd be racists. There are over 60 openly proclaimed Black Colleges in the US. Yet if there were 'White colleges' THAT would be a racist college. In the Million Man March, you believed that you were marching for your race and rights. If we marched for our race and rights, you would call us racists. You are proud to be black, brown, yellow and orange, and you're not afraid to announce it. But when we announce our white pride, you call us racists. You rob us, carjack us, and shoot at us. But, when a white police officer shoots a black gang member or beats up a black drug-dealer running from the law and posing a threat to society, you call him a racist. I am proud. But you call me a racist. Why is it that only whites can be racists? . .less by Hizzonna da Mare on March 05 2008, 12:55 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

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