The 2023 matric class of Zonnebloem Nest Senior School made history for the school by scoring a matric pass rate above 90% and improving the school’s Bachelor’s pass rate.
At the annual National Senior Certificate awards ceremony, held at Leeuwenhof on Tuesday January 30, the school received an award for having one of the highest Bachelor’s pass increases in the province.
The category recognises 10 schools with 30 or more candidates that have shown the greatest increase in the percentage of candidates achieving Bachelor’s passes from 2020 to 2023.
The school achieved a 92.3% pass rate, with 65 of its 70 matrics passing, and its Bachelor’s pass rate increased from 49.1% in 2022 to 56.9%.
Principal Heather Calmeyer said they had been hovering around the 80% range for the past few years.
Most of the school’s pupils come from the townships of Khayelitsha, Gugulethu, Delft and Philippi.
“Our learners are amazing and though they face many social challenges, they find a way to persevere and overcome to achieve and attain success outside of school,” Ms Calmeyer said.
Claremont High School also received an award at the ceremony for the increase it saw in its number of matric distinctions. The category recognises schools that have shown the greatest increase in the percentage of candidates achieving subject distinctions from 2022 to 2023.
The school’s matrics achieved 120 subject distinctions overall with five pupils each achieving six distinctions and four pupils each achieving distinctions for all seven subjects.
“Every student at CHS takes pure mathematics and physical sciences. This combination of subjects is very difficult and requires hard work and commitment from the students. Many students live in tough socio-economic conditions and travel long distances every day. The challenges they overcome make their achievements even more remarkable,” said principal Murray Gibbon.
Meanwhile, Salt River High School’s matric results improved by 3% from 67.8% to 70.3%. Three pupils attained 80% for two subjects, and there was an improvement in the number of Bachelor’s passes (14 pupils).
Principal Donovan Nicholas said there was a general overall improvement from the school’s 2022 results.
The matric results were released on Friday January 18 with the Western Cape achieving a 81.54% pass rate, up by 0.1% from the previous year.
