Matric inmates raise the bar

The inmate class of 2015 achieved an overall pass rate of 73% - a marked increase compared to the inmate results of 2014.

In 2014, prisoners achieved 69%.

According to Correctional Services National Commissioner Zach Modise there were several improvements across a wide spectrum.

Bachelor passes increased from 18 to 33, the number of inmates passing Mathematics improved from 0 to 14, while all the candidates passed Mathematical Literacy.

Inmates at two additional full-time schools for offenders - Tswelopele in the Free State and Brandvlei in the Western Cape - wrote the exam, achieving 92% and 67% overall pass rates respectively.

The Cradock offenders’ school achieved a 60% pass rate after a consecutive 0% pass rate over four years. The total number of distinctions obtained also increased by 25%, from 24 in 2014 to 30 in 2015, 19 of which were in Life Orientation.

Modise said the top three performing inmate schools were: Tswelopele Secondary School for the Free State/Northern Cape region with 91.67%; the oldest full-time offenders’ school Usethubeni Youth School in Durban Westville in KwaZulu-Natal with 86.21%; and Umlalati Learning Centre in the Limpopo-Mpumalanga and North West Region with 85.71%.

Modise added that they had begun to address the concerns expressed by Minister of Justice and Correctional Services Michael Masutha about poor levels of offender participation in Mathematics and Physical Science studies.

Compared to a 0% pass rate in Mathematics in 2014, 14 out of 29 candidates registered passes in 2015.

Source News 24