No joy in poor exam results A glance at the performance of schools in terms of their percentage pass rates in 2016 tells another gloomy story. In her announcement of the Junior Secondary Certificate results for 2016, education minister Katrina Hanse-Himarwa, expressed concern at the overall pass rate, with specific reference to the low pass rate in Accounting. In fact the slightly improved Grade 10 results are nothing to be proud of and not worth celebrating at all. While we decry the poor performance of the class of 2016, we should pause to acknowledge the contribution of parents and teachers who have made a real difference to ensure that their children are part of the 21 291 that qualified for admission for Grade 11 in 2017. Their selfless influence, coupled with the commitment of the learners has indeed paid off handsomely. However, the 2016 Grade 10 exam results have once again prompted soul-searching owing to the high failure rate, which stands at 44%. It is through quality holistic education that lives are changed, because education is an asset and “the great equaliser”, and if we don't deal with the impediments to meaningful and quality education, then we are doomed forever. The measure of a nation is in turning education into an asset and most importantly, into an equalising factor for society, where no child will feel left out or inferior. With all the myriad of challenges facing the education system there must be a continuous programme to address the learning weaknesses and educational problems at most of our government schools. These interventions must improve teaching and learning outcomes. It is true that some regions have implemented measures to monitor performance, but some are really struggling – and the perennial dismissal of obvious shortcomings, is testimony that all is not well in all regions. As custodians of education, government must furthermore address the morale of teachers, which is very low at the moment. We doubt that many teachers are motivated to perform beyond the call of duty, because their concerns are not addressed on time, especially those that have to deal with 50 to 70 children in a classroom.No joy in poor exam results A glance at the performance of schools in terms of their percentage pass rates in 2016 tells another gloomy story. In her announcement of the Junior Secondary Certificate results for 2016, education minister Katrina Hanse-Himarwa, expressed concern at the overall pass rate, with specific reference to the low pass rate in Accounting. In fact the slightly improved Grade 10 results are nothing to be proud of and not worth celebrating at all. While we decry the poor performance of the class of 2016, we should pause to acknowledge the contribution of parents and teachers who have made a real difference to ensure that their children are part of the 21 291 that qualified for admission for Grade 11 in 2017. Their selfless influence, coupled with the commitment of the learners has indeed paid off handsomely. However, the 2016 Grade 10 exam results have once again prompted soul-searching owing to the high failure rate, which stands at 44%. It is through quality holistic education that lives are changed, because education is an asset and “the great equaliser”, and if we don't deal with the impediments to meaningful and quality education, then we are doomed forever. The measure of a nation is in turning education into an asset and most importantly, into an equalising factor for society, where no child will feel left out or inferior. With all the myriad of challenges facing the education system there must be a continuous programme to address the learning weaknesses and educational problems at most of our government schools. These interventions must improve teaching and learning outcomes. It is true that some regions have implemented measures to monitor performance, but some are really struggling – and the perennial dismissal of obvious shortcomings, is testimony that all is not well in all regions. As custodians of education, government must furthermore address the morale of teachers, which is very low at the moment. We doubt that many teachers are motivated to perform beyond the call of duty, because their concerns are not addressed on time, especially those that have to deal with 50 to 70 children in a classroom.