Minister Schäfer honours top WCED exam officials
12 March 2021
The Western Cape Minister of Education, Debbie Schäfer, presented special awards to three WCED officials who have ensured the smooth running of the National Senior Certificate (NSC) exams in our province for many years. All three are retiring this year, and they were honoured with certificates during the WCED NSC awards held at the Premier’s residence, Leeuwenhof.
Ms Tina Singh, the Chief Director: Assessment and Examinations, has served the Department for 12 years, and has been in the public service for 40 years overall. The Minister said of Ms Singh: “Tina is one of the main reasons our matric exams run like clockwork each year, on time, and with no leaks in our province. I don’t think anyone can actually imagine the amount of work that goes into this process. She, like the other two recipients, has not had a December holiday for more years than they care to remember. And poor Tina couldn’t even have hers mid-year last year, as her plans were scuppered by the coronavirus. Tina, thank you for all you have done for the WCED. We will certainly miss your diligence, and your calm professionalism.”
The Minister also honoured Dr Peter Beets, the Deputy Director-General: Curriculum and Assessment Management, for his service, saying: “Dr Beets has led a team of curriculum and assessment officials that has done incredible work this year and every year. Your expertise, dedication and kindness will be sorely missed. I wish you a happy, healthy retirement with your family.”
The Superintendent-General, Mr Brian Schreuder, retires this month after serving the WCED for 47 years (including 20 years of work on curriculum and assessment). The Minister noted that this past year has been a particularly difficult one for education, and that the SG applied his many years of experience and leadership to guide us through this period. She added: “SG, I will miss your constant support, kind humour, wealth of experience and above all, deep passion for quality education. At this event I will especially miss the special pen for signing certificates and the instructions to “be careful not to smudge”, even after I have been doing this for 6 years! Thank you for your many years of service to our schools.”
Their collective experience will be sorely missed by the Department.
The Minister congratulated all WCED staff for their exemplary work in facing the challenges of the past year, making special note of the efforts of Western Cape teachers in ensuring that matrics were ready for the examinations.
