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The graph compares pass rates for the year’s 2012 and 2013 in Matabeleland North’s best performing schools

Pamela Shumba Senior Reporter
JOHN Tallach, Dlamini and Nemane high schools recorded the best Advanced Level results for 2013 in Matabeleland North Province with 100 percent pass rates.
But the three schools had a combined 26 candidates sitting for the A’Level examinations.John Tallach had eight candidates writing the examinations for the first time, while Dlamini had seven candidates sitting for the examinations after the two schools introduced  A’Level two years ago.

Nemane maintained its 2012 pass rate and recorded a 100 percent pass rate after 11 candidates sat for last year’s examinations.
According to results from the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education, Matabeleland North recorded an overall 75 percent pass rate in the 2013 examination, down from 81,6 percent in 2012.

A candidate is considered to have passed A’Level if they register at least a Grade E in two subjects, representing two points. Gloag High School in Inyathi – with 57 candidates – was second with a 98 percent of its students passing, an improvement from 86 percent in 2012.

Tshabanda’s 20 candidates saw the school dropping from 100 percent in 2012 to 95 percent in 2013. Coming fourth was Inyathi High School, which recorded a 100 percent pass rate in 2012 but dropped to 94 percent with 54 candidates sitting for the examinations.

St James, with 55 candidates, also dropped to 92 percent from 100 percent in 2012. Fatima recorded 87 percent after 41 candidates sat for the examinations up from 83 percent in 2012.

Tsholotsho High came seventh after seeing a drop in the percentage pass rate from 82 percent in 2012 to 78 percent in 2013. Sixty-seven candidates sat the examinations.
Mosiyatunya in Victoria Falls had a total of 82 candidates sitting for the examinations and dropped from a pass rate of 80 percent in 2012 to 72 percent last year.

Gebuza High in Hwange, which had 85 candidates – the highest number in the province recorded a pass rate of 58 percent, down from 72 percent in 2012.
The lowest-ranked schools, Lubimbi and Tsheli, recorded 45 and 46 percent while the rest recorded an average of between 50 and 55 percent.

Geography, which had the highest enrolment of 523 candidates, recorded the lowest subject pass rate of 28 percent, while Accounts recorded 39 percent.
A total of 14 candidates, up from 12 candidates in 2012, sat for Physics and scored a clean 100 percent pass rate.

English Literature was written by 263 candidates and the province recorded a pass rate of 82 percent, while Mathematics recorded 56 percent. In Chemistry, 48 candidates sat for the examination with an 81 percent success rate.

Biology, with 81 candidates – up from 11 in 2012 – had a 59 percent pass return. In Binga district, no candidate sat for Biology, Physics and Chemistry subjects because all the schools do not have science laboratories.

Boitathelo Mnguni, the Matabeleland North provincial education director, attributed the drop in the pass rate to an improvement in the number of candidates last year.

“The overall pass rate dropped because the number of candidates that sat for the A’ Level examinations significantly improved. This has been necessitated by the number of schools that have introduced A’ Level in the province,” said Mnguni.

“With more access to the examinations, it is normal for the pass rate to drop because of the huge numbers.”
Mnguni said she was happy that there was an improvement in the Mathematics pass rate in both A’ Level and O’ Level examinations. But she expressed concern on the high rate of failure in Geography and Accounts,  saying the province had launched an investigation.

“There was a significant drop in Geography, with some schools recording zero percent,” she said.
“We’re trying to investigate what transpired because we’ve some candidates who wrote the subjects in June last year and passed yet they had not even finished the syllabus.

They then failed dismally in the November examinations.” She also bemoaned lack of qualified A’ Level teachers in the province, saying some unqualified teachers were out of their depth.