Matric results: KZN comes out on top with impressive 90.6% pass rate
Minister of Basic Education, Siviwe Gwarube announced on Monday night that the class of 2025 had achieved an 88% pass rate in the NSC examinations — the highest in South Africa’s history. KZN was the leading province with a 90.6% pass rate.
Image: Itumeleng English / Independent Newspapers
Minister of Basic Education, Siviwe Gwarube announced last night that the matric Class of 2025 had achieved an 88% overall pass rate, an improvement from the 2024 results and the highest pass rate in history.
She also said that more than 920,000 candidates sat for the 2025 National Senior Certificate (NSC) examinations nationwide and 345 000 achieved Bachelor's passes.
KwaZulu-Natal, for the first time, moved to the number one position as the top performer in the country when it comes to matric results. The Free State, which has dominated the number one position for many years, is now second, and Gauteng is in third place.
The results released yesterday showed that KZN registered a 1.1 percentage point increase in the pass rate, bringing it to 90.6%.
Education experts have stated that the performance by KZN indicates that stakeholders in the province know what to do and are taking their responsibilities seriously.
Education expert Professor Labby Ramrathan said he believes that when it comes to the pass rate, the country is performing at its best, and no such level has been reached before. Among the reasons he expected the pass rate to be lower is that while many students go to school to study, there are equally many others who attend school for reasons other than education, such as socialising.
Additionally, there is a cohort of students who are still feeling the impact of Covid-19, with studies showing that many children are not reading for comprehension.
Professor Ramrathan noted that the performance of KZN is not a fluke, adding that a lot of work has been done by the province. He stated that the infrastructure allowing the pupils to perform is in place, and both teachers and pupils understand what needs to be done, while parents are playing a role in supporting their children in schools.
“Another reason is that since KwaZulu-Natal has entered the group of top performers, there is a momentum to keep that going, and the pressure to maintain that performance means a lot of work is being done to ensure that,” he added.
Professor Jonathan Jansen, distinguished professor at the Faculty of Education at Stellenbosch University, mentioned that while it is not possible for him to speculate on why KZN would perform better, its performance is likely to increase the national pass rate. He added, “Probably, so far the annual pass rates have defied both statistical and political gravity.”
Speaking on the pass rate versus the quality of the pass rate, he said, “The real indicator of quality is, of course, the bachelor pass rate, but more substantially, the quality and source of the cohort's participation in pure maths and physical sciences.”
He also raised concerns that many students are opting for subjects that will allow them to pass, such as maths literacy, while avoiding subjects like pure maths and science that the country actually needs.
He pointed out that this could have a real negative impact on the future of the children, stating, “It means they are cut off from university entrance and also from scientific and technical disciplines that power economic growth.”
Professor Mbulu Madiba, dean of the Faculty of Education at Stellenbosch University, stated, “Overall, the matric results this year are likely to be slightly better than those of last year, largely because there were minimal disruptions to teaching and learning. In the case of KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), the improved performance can be attributed to the province’s recovery from previous unrest and flood-related disruptions, which allowed schools to stabilise and focus more consistently on curriculum coverage and exam preparation.”
Speaking on the pass rate and the quality of subject passes, he said: “The NSC has fully matured, and the pass rate gives some indication of the quality of passes, especially the bachelor passes. This (taking subjects that will allow them to pass, i.e., maths literacy, and avoiding subjects like science that the country actually needs) is a major challenge; many schools are avoiding STEM subjects like maths and science. We need these subjects for the digital and technological age we are living in.”