The Western Cape has achieved a pass rate of 82,7% in the 2001 Senior Certificate examinations, an increase of 2,1% on that of last year.

The province's Minister of Education, Mr André Gaum, announced the results at a special function at the Mew Way Centre in Khayelitsha on Thursday, 27 December, 2001.

"We are very proud of the Western Cape's excellent results," he said. "I am proud of everyone who has gone the extra mile to make this possible."

In his speech announcing the results, Mr Gaum said: "Given our high pass rates, of 78,8% in 1999, 80,6% in 2000, and 82,7% in 2001, we cannot realistically expect to improve continually.

"If our results continue to fluctuate within a margin of 2 - 3 %, we will be satisfied. Our pass rates reflect the high standard of education in the province, and stability in the system."

A total of 37 559 candidates wrote the full Senior Certificate examinations. Of these, 31 049 passed.

A total of 9 378 candidates -- or 25% of the total -- passed with matriculation endorsement. This is slightly more than those who achieved matriculation endorsement in 2000.

"Just over 60% of the candidates who followed endorsement courses achieved the endorsement. This is an area which we must continually strive to improve," Mr Gaum said.

A total of 1 566 candidates passed with Distinction, where they achieved aggregates of more than 1 680 marks or more. A further 6 024 candidates achieved their passes with Merit, for aggregates of between 1 260 and 1679. These are new categories of achievement that have been agreed upon nationally.

Mr Gaum said that a number of factors had contributed to the improved results.

"The first is the commitment of our educators and learners across the province. For this, I would like to thank every single educator and learner.

"Secondly, we have been fortunate to have had stability in our system this year, with few disruptions.

"We are also pleased to report that special interventions to improve matric results over the years have yielded pleasing results.

"These include special interventions at schools that achieved a pass rate of less than 60% in last year's matric exams. Of the 60 schools that achieved a pass rate of less than 60% in 2000, 43 improved their results this year. The average improvement in these intervention schools was 9,4 percentage points."

Mr Gaum drew particular attention to the new Centre of Science and Technology (COSAT) in Khayelitsha, which was established to stimulate greater participation of learners from disadvantaged communities in science and mathematics.

Twenty-one COSAT candidates wrote matric for the first time this year. All passed their matric. Of these, 10 passed mathematics on the higher grade, 13 passed science on the higher grade, and 15 passed biology on the higher grade.

"Looking at the broader picture, 67 schools achieved 100% pass rates, and we congratulate these schools for this excellent achievement," Mr Gaum said.

"More significant, perhaps, is the maintenance of 100% pass rates. We extend our congratulations to 44 schools that have achieved 100% pass rates over the past two years, and 34 schools that have achieved this distinction over the past three years."

Two hundred schools achieved a pass rate of 85% and above. Of these, 174 have achieved this pass rate for two years in a row, while 168 schools achieved pass rates of 85% and above over the past three years.

"While we are grateful for so many schools that have achieved high pass rates, we must note that the pass rate of a school is not the only indicator of excellence. Another challenge for our schools is to improve the results of those who are passing," Mr Gaum added.

"The department will provide as much support as possible to ensure that learners achieve the results they are really capable of. This will include ongoing, professional support during the teaching and learning year.

"For example, as our seven new Education Management and Development Centres will become fully functional, we are confident that their role in supporting and developing schools will make a significant contribution.

"Other forms of support include special awards for achievement, particularly for schools serving disadvantaged communities in difficult situations. We will honour many of these schools later on this morning, as well as our top candidates."

Mr Gaum said that the department would look for ways to reward hard work and commitment, especially for those who manage to excel, notwithstanding difficult circumstances.

"We need to celebrate the achievement of all involved in the excellence reflected in our provincial pass rate. These include dedicated learners, educators, parents, school managements, and departmental officials.

"I would like to pay special tribute to our senior officials and their teams for their excellent work in managing the matric exam process this year," Mr Gaum said.

"They include the Acting Head of Education in the Western Cape, Mr Johan Fourie; the Deputy Director-General: Education Planning and Development, Mr Brian Schreuder; our Director of Curriculum Development, Ms Jenny Rault-Smith; and the Director of Examinations, Mr André Clausen."

Mr Gaum continued: "Our challenge remains to ensure quality education in all our schools. Therefore, we will step up our efforts to ensure strategic interventions in those schools that did not perform well. We will assist them and encourage them. We will start an inservice training institute to assist those teachers who may need further support and development.

"We will be encouraged by improvements in the results of other provinces. We want South Africa to succeed -- and South Africa can only succeed if we succeed in education in all our provinces.

"We also recognise the fact that we have certain infrastructural advantages that other provinces do not have. We will be at the disposal of other provinces if they need our assistance.

"In the final analysis, there is no substitute for hard work and commitment. All of us involved in education will have to work relentlessly to achieve our goal of ensuring quality education for all. We cannot afford passengers. They must either shape up or ship out. Our vision should be that we as a country, we as a province, shall succeed. We shall succeed and nothing will stop us."