By Johnathan Paoli

President Cyril Ramaphosa has called on businesses to do more to ensure that youngsters are hired.

“Just as preparing our nation’s young people to achieve success in this exam is a collaborative effort, there is much more that partners like the private sector can do to hire young people,” he said in his weekly Monday letter to the nation.

Ramaphosa, who used the letter to reflect on the importance of the final matric exams, said it was important to think about the scale of the efforts to absorb these learners into the economy once they have attained the results they have worked so hard for.

The unemployment rate among young people aged 15-24 stands at 60.8%, according to the latest Quarterly Labour Force Survey. 

“We once again call on employers to relax the requirement of prior work experience, particularly for entry-level positions, and for entry into vocational occupations where young employees can be trained on the job,” the president said.

“Employers should take advantage of incentives to encourage them to hire more young people. These include various sectoral learnership agreements, discretionary grants for skills training, and the Employee Tax Incentive.”

He also said that recent business premises inspections by the home affairs and labour departments had highlighted the contentious issue of some employers preferring to employ foreign nationals and illegal immigrants. 

The president called on employers to instead open up more opportunities for young South Africans entering the job market. 

“They need to remember that by law they have to ensure that no suitable South African citizen or permanent resident is available to fill a position before employing a foreign national. This is established practice around the world,” Ramaphosa said.

He said everyone had a responsibility to ensure that the morale of the Class of 2024 was boosted by knowing their hard work and sacrifices will be rewarded. 

“Let us continue to work together to ensure that the latest cohort of matriculants find the opportunities for employment or further education and training that they deserve.”

Meanwhile, Higher Education and Training Minister Nobuhle Nkabane has highlighted the urgent need for students to apply for funding through the National Student Financial Aid Scheme.

The application window closes on 15 December.

“Eligible students must act swiftly to secure financial support for their further education,” she said.

The minister said the Post-School Education and Training system offered a diverse range of opportunities through different colleges and universities.

She said that these pathways aligned with the National Skills Development Strategy 2030, which was aimed at addressing the nation’s skills development priorities and driving a skills revolution.

INSIDE EDUCATION

By Edwin Naidu

South Africa’s tertiary education sector is urgently grappling with sustainability challenges amidst sluggish economic growth and the disruptive influence of digitalisation and artificial intelligence on the global job market, as highlighted by Universities South Africa (USAf) CEO Dr Phethiwe Matutu.

“In the light of global and local crises and unprecedented technological advancements, South African universities may be at a turning point in history,” Matutu added. 

Reflecting on “The Future of the University” at a three-day conference at the CSIR in Pretoria, Matutu made it clear that the higher education sector was facing enormous sustainability challenges due to slow economic growth. 

This was further exacerbated by the profound and transformative impact of digitalisation and AI on the world of work in general. 

The conference explored current and developing trends in higher education and how they impacted universities’ core functions of teaching and learning, research and engagement, leadership and management, transformation, and how institutions positioned graduates for the future world of work and economic participation. 

“A sluggish economy has resulted in high levels of unemployment and declining state subsidies. How universities respond to these and global changes (including climate variability, adaptability and environmental sustainability) will determine not only the future of the university, but that of society and humanity,” she said. 

USAf chairperson Prof. Francis Petersen, the new Vice-Chancellor of the University of Pretoria, highlighted the conference’s collaborative nature.

It brought together local and international university leaders, researchers, policymakers, educators and industry experts, tapping into their collective wisdom and engaging in impactful conversations about sustaining the future of universities in South Africa and globally.

Petersen acknowledged the challenges but also highlighted the potential for positive change. 

He said that while global crises have impacted SouthAfrican universities and they were still confronting historical and structural inequalities, positive change was possible.

The ever-evolving challenges related to rapid technological advancements in developing countries, inadequate governance and deepening financial and sustainability crises can be opportunities for growth and improvement.

“As knowledge-producing and critical citizenship development institutions, universities have a special and vital role. They are beacons of hope and are institutions for human progress and development,” he said. 

Key topics deliberated on, included:

• Technology and human interface in the future university;

• Higher education funding and financial sustainability;

• Academic freedom;

• Research and innovation strategies in relation to declining resources;

• Climate change, environmental issues and the future of the university;

• Artificial intelligence and teaching and learning in the future university.

Petersen said global themes and topics surrounding the university’s future ignited thinking around critical higher education focus areas interlinked with the future of humanity. 

“We can only gain deeper insights into what the sector’s future may look like through interactive engagement with the multiple stakeholders within the industry.”

He said universities significantly impact society’s advancement. 

They shape the education system, produce and hone skills and competencies needed for the economy, contribute to scientific discoveries, advancements, and innovations, and shape society’s overall progress.

Petersen noted that the conference took place after a significant disruption to the higher education system and social life caused by global catastrophes such as the Covid-19 pandemic, contributing to a vastly different reality on local campuses.

“Covid-19 led to a rapid online pivot in universities while ongoing, quick-paced technology developments in AI were underway. During all this, universities must remain at the forefront of the digital revolution and map their future paths while doing so. 

“Slow adaptation to rapid digitalisation can only be to the sector’s detriment,” he warned.

“As universities navigate this complex terrain, it is imperative to critically reflect on past practices while charting pathways toward a more inclusive, equitable and responsive system.” 

That is why USAf, recognising the need for strong and effective universities, was working through its six strategy groups (funding, leadership and management, research and innovation, teaching and learning, transformation, and the world of work) to promote cohesive, but diverse public universities that served society.

Identifying sustainable funding was vital for the future of universities. This included examining the state subsidy model, the National Student Financial Aid Scheme modeland its sustainability, and university fee regulations.

Former University of the Witwatersrand vice-chancellor Prof. Adam Habib, who is now the Vice-Chancellor of SOAS, University of London, told delegates that while there was positivity over transforming South Africa’s tertiary system from apartheid to democracy, its success hid significant structural fault lines in the country’s higher education sector.  

He said that the university system had not achieved the programmatic differentiation envisaged at the turn of the century, instead degenerating into homogenisation and vertical stratification based on reputation. 

As a result, he said the incentive structure for research subsidies and the ranking systems had pushed all universities to try to be like each other, undermining the programmatic and functional differentiation that would allow institutions to produce the diverse human capital base required for South Africa’s economic and social development. 

In his address, ‘Reflections on Post-Apartheid Higher Education: Looking Back, Going Forwar’, Habib said his reflections touched on higher education policy and highlighted successes, failures and blind spots, especially as they speak to the future. 

Habib’s keynote address contained five lessons from the past that could shape the future: 

• Leadership matters. This leadership needs to speak to our context. In South African universities, this means enabling access, ensuring a quality education, and building a financially sound institution. 

• Institutional and national citizenship cannot simply emerge from education and acculturation; consequences must be applied to malevolent behaviour. There is no better case study for this than the issue of violence.

• Capabilities matter. If there is a central lesson to be learned from Covid-19, it is that ordinary citizens are the primary victims of a lack of capabilities within the state. 

• How we spend is as important as how much we spend. This basic principle, common to most households in our country, is lost on most public institutions and funding regimes.

• Finally, stewardship and governance of public institutions matter. 

He said these five lessons were intertwined and that it was impossible to address collective challenges without a comprehensive response that included, among other things, the five lessons identified. 

“We have in effect become what we most hate: a segregated society, defined perhaps not by the formal legally enforced rules of race, but definitely by the informal rule of money. This future will consolidate unless we demonstrate the courage and the political will to act now to stop the rot,” Habib said. 

INSIDE EDUCATION

By Zane Davids, Lisa Seymour and Rafeeq Jaffer

The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in a shift towards the use of social media platforms in teaching. The South African Department of Basic Education, for one, instructed all schools to adopt online teaching and learning to save the 2020 school year, disrupted by the pandemic and the forced closure of schools.

It is getting clearer that this shift towards technology use will continue. Some researchers have noted that it has also put the focus of the learning process more on students than on teachers.

Young people aged between 15 and 24 usually attend secondary school or higher education institutions and use social media. Incorporating social media into school activities could make learning more interesting to this age group. Their participation and performance in their studies might then improve.

We are information systems researchers with the University of Cape Town. Our research focus is on the use of information systems in education, specifically in underdeveloped communities. We seek to identify and offer solutions to some of the challenges of using technology in the classroom.

Our recent study describes the challenges secondary school teachers face when using social media applications like WhatsApp as a teaching tool. They include access to devices, internet connectivity, security, skills, school policies and useful application features.

The education department, school management, teachers, students and application developers should work together on these issues to make technology more effective in teaching.

Social media platforms and teaching

The integration of WhatsApp into the school curriculum became one of the focus areas of the South African Department of Basic Education during the COVID-19 lockdown in 2020. Teachers, besides being competent in their subjects, now needed to be comfortable using social media platforms for teaching.

But teachers, especially those from schools in poorer communities with limited technology resources, don’t all have the skills needed to effectively use online applications like WhatsApp for teaching. Practical solutions are needed to help them.

Four public, fee-paying secondary schools from the Western Cape Provincial Department of Education were included in this study. The schools all use social media as an online tool to support their teaching. They record and share learning materials like teaching videos and video notes, send homework and reminders about homework tasks, and conduct virtual classroom lessons. They also use the technology as a translation tool.

These schools started using social media to teach during the pandemic and continued afterwards. Teachers at each school with social media teaching experience were interviewed. A total of six teachers were interviewed over a period of a year.

School documents like the cellphone and social media policies and the school’s code of conduct were also reviewed.

The challenges associated with using social media are classified into different categories: student, teacher, application and institutional challenges.

Student challenges: Students from poorer communities often don’t have access to a cellphone, or their devices have basic functionality. This does not allow them to access WhatsApp. Students who live in dangerous neighbourhoods are also at risk of having their phones stolen. Students’ privacy and safety linked to cyberbullying is also a concern since they would need to share their mobile numbers to be included in a WhatsApp classroom group.

While some students have access to a device, they don’t have data on the device to use WhatsApp. Some also lack the skills to access resources sent on social media.

Teacher challenges: Teachers themselves experience challenges when using social media for teaching. Their privacy is a concern since students have access to their personal cellphone numbers. This makes it difficult to separate their work and personal lives. This is unfair on the teachers. Not having adequate training to use social media is also an issue for the teachers.

The older teachers feel less confident in using social media within the classroom and rely on their younger colleagues to help them. Managing WhatsApp classroom groups is difficult since the teachers need to constantly add or replace cellphone numbers. The teachers are then left with the task of managing multiple contacts.

Application challenges: Limitations associated with the WhatsApp application itself affect teaching. Sending large files like videos and documents over WhatsApp is blocked. It is especially frustrating when teaching videos are blocked. The teacher needs to split the video into smaller parts which are then sent piecemeal over WhatsApp to the students.

WhatsApp does not provide a professional presentation mode for teaching. This is frustrating for a teacher who wants to make a PowerPoint presentation to the students.

Institutional challenges: The school plays a role in the success rates achieved when using social media as an online teaching tool. Teachers say Wi-Fi connectivity may be intermittent or inaccessible. Weak signals, having no electricity, and vandalism are mentioned as reasons.

When the Wi-Fi does not work, teachers and students must then rely on their own data, which can be costly. School policies that do not fully support the use of social media applications for teaching prevent WhatsApp from being fully utilised. Some schools do not allow students to use cellphones, unless prior permission is given. Without permission, phones are confiscated and students are fined.

Why our findings matter

The biggest challenge is the unequal access to the internet and cellphones which schools in poorer communities have. Students not using social media eventually fall behind because they don’t receive learning materials from their teachers.

Additionally, teachers struggle with increased work when using social media and work frustrations brought about by WhatsApp’s lack of teaching features.

The South African Department of Basic Education wants to see the successful integration of technology use like WhatsApp into all South African classrooms. That can’t happen unless all the challenges are adequately addressed.

Davids is a Lecturer and Researcher in Information Systems, University of Cape Town, Seymour is a Professor, the University of Cape Town and Jaffer is a Researcher, University of Cape Town

This article was originally published in The Conversation. 

INSIDE EDUCATION

By Amy Musgrave

With the matric exams starting on Monday, the Basic Education Department says some of its main concerns are potential protests and power cuts.

The National Senior Certificate (NSC) examinations will run for just over a month until 27 November.

For now, the department has been assured by Eskom that there will be no load reductions for the first week of the exams while learners write computer-based subjects.

Briefing the media on the readiness of the department to administer the exams, Deputy Minister Reginah Mhaule said that there had been a meeting between the department and Eskom.

“Now we have the challenge… of load reduction, not load-shedding. Eskom said there will be no load-shedding, as there is no load-shedding.

“The subjects that require electricity… will be written this week and they have promised us that there will be no disturbances whatsoever,” she said in Pretoria on Sunday.

For the rest of the exam period, the deputy minister said the department was encouraging provinces to enter into discussions with municipalities because they “are the ones who are now embarking on this load reduction as a way of curbing their debt to Eskom”.

She said municipalities and the SA Local Government Association had promised that the “exams would run”.

Mhaule said the security cluster would monitor the exams and respond to any incidents or disasters that may arise.

While no protests have been threatened with regards to the exams, demonstrations in South Africa occur regularly, especially over the lack of service delivery.

Also, Gauteng has seen a number of protests in its townships over the last couple of weeks against foreign nationals who own spaza shops. They have been blamed for food poisoning incidents that have left children ill, and monopolising the township economy.

Basic Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube appealed to communities to give Grade 12 learners the support they needed and to ensure that there were no disruptions during the exam period.

“Protesting is a democratically protected right. All my plea is that our exam centres and our schools are national assets. There are over 800,000 candidates who are going to have this one opportunity to write an exam that that can change the course of their lives.

“…. I just ask communities to be mindful of the fact that protest action can disrupt this critical period and that we would appreciate from communities to understand… [that we need] to give learners the best shot,” the minister said.

South Africa’s largest teacher union, Sadtu, has also spoken against any demonstrations during this period.

“We strongly condemn any community protests or disruptions timed to coincide with the exams as such actions deprive learners of the opportunity to complete exams that can change their lives for the better,” Sadtu general secretary Mugwena Maluleke said in a statement.

Earlier this month the Umalusi Council for Quality Assurance in General and Further Education and Training warned that factors that could disrupt the smooth running of the exams included load-shedding, community protests and cheating.

INSIDE EDUCATION

By Johnathan Paoli

With the National Senior Certificate (NSC) exams starting on Monday, the Basic Education Department says it all systems go.

Basic Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube said on Sunday that the exams were not only a critical milestone for the learners involved, but they also represented the cumulative efforts of the education system, schools, communities and the department.

“With just hours to go before the first paper is written, I proudly announce that we are ready to administer the 2024 NSC exams – holding ourselves to best-in-class integrity, security, and efficiency standards,” she told reporters in Pretoria.

Well wishes have been pouring in for the Class of 2024, with President Cyril Ramaphosa acknowledging the dedication of the learners, teachers and their families.

“You are ready now to play back the knowledge you have acquired during these important years of your life. Be confident in what you know and believe in yourself,” the Ramaphosa said.

“These examinations are not an obstacle; they’re a gateway to your continued success and a new phase of your life in which the adventure of learning and the ability to share your knowledge with others never stops.

“As you continue to prepare for your exams, there will be moments of difficulty. When these come, ask for help from everyone around you and they will support you.”

Gwarube said department has implemented numerous interventions.

These included personalised learning programmes and extra tuition sessions to address the educational disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, which particularly affected this cohort of learners earlier in high school.

Other key initiatives supporting the Class of 2024 were personalised learning interventions, additional teaching support and socio-emotional care. 

Equally, provinces rolled out face-to-face extra tuition sessions, Saturday catch-up programmes, and extended school hours in key subjects — especially to learners who struggled to cope with the curriculum content due to earlier disruptions. 

These targeted initiatives focused on subjects with high enrolments, such as Mathematics, Life Sciences and Business Studies.

In addition to classroom-based interventions, learners have also benefited from extensive support in the form of revision materials, past question papers and online resources made available through public-private partnerships with stakeholders such as Vodacom, MTN and the National Education Collaboration Trust.

The minister said these partnerships had made an invaluable contribution to education in the country. 

This year, the examination process will include 727,121 full-time and 155,215 part-time candidates, along with 16,400 learners from private institutions writing the IEB exams.

Gwarube said that to ensure the integrity of the examination process, comprehensive security measures had been put in place, including monitoring at high-risk centres and deploying qualified markers for the grading process.

Meanwhile, the Democratic Alliance has also extended its best wishes to the matric class, highlighting the resilience shown by learners amidst various challenges such as overcrowded classrooms and inconsistent access to school resources.

The DA’s Delmaine Christians emphasised the importance of staying focused during this critical period and expressed hope for successful outcomes once the results were released next year.

She said good quality education was the best way to ensure that young people were lifted out of poverty.

INSIDE EDUCATION

By Johnathan Paoli

The SA Democratic Teachers’ Union (Sadtu) has issued a heartfelt message of well wishes and thoughts to the Class of 2024 as they prepare to write their National Senior Certificate exams that start on Monday.

With over 732,000 full-time and 136,000 part-time candidates registered, which is an increase of 8400 from last year, Sadtu spokesperson Nomusa Cembi said the exams symbolised the culmination of twelve years of education.

“These examinations… carry immense pressure. They are often seen as a reflection of the health of our education system, while learners view them as the key to unlocking higher education and future opportunities. Considerable resources have been invested in study camps to prepare learners for this important milestone,” she said in a statement.

“However, Sadtu believes that the burden of pressure placed on these exams can be alleviated if the Department of Basic Education allocates equal attention and resources across all grades. A well-functioning system from foundation phase upwards would ensure smoother progress for all learners, including Grade 12s.”

Cembi said the union was concerned that while approximately 1.1 million learners began Grade 10 two years ago, only 827,000 were set to write the exams, highlighting a dropout rate of nearly 200,000 students.

She commended the dedication of teachers who have guided these learners throughout their educational journeys and praised the resilience of the pupils.

Cembi also noted the efforts made by provincial education departments to ensure a smooth examination process.

She called for tightened security measures to prevent any potential exam paper leaks and to maintain the credibility of the exams.

Sadtu’s secretariat called on leaners to resist engaging in any form of dishonesty, such as cheating.

“Integrity is crucial during this critical period,” it said.

Cembi encouraged parents, teachers and community members to support matriculants as part of the union’s “I Am a School Fan” campaign.

The secretariat has also warned against any community protests or disruptions that may coincide with the examination schedule, saying such actions would unjustly impact learners striving to complete their exams and achieve their dreams.

“Lastly, we encourage all students, from every grade, phase and institution of higher learning to stay calm and focused during this examination season. Every exam, regardless of the level, is important and significant to the learner’s progress,” it said.

INSIDE EDUCATION

By Johnathan Paoli

A mediation process aimed at resolving the dispute surrounding the Basic Education Laws Amendment Act has concluded inconclusively at the National Economic, Development and Labour Council (Nedlac).

The meeting involved representatives from Solidarity, the Basic Education Department and the Presidency.

It followed Solidarity’s submission of a Section 77 strike notice to Nedlac, which seeks protection for its members during a planned protest march against the legislation to the Union Buildings in Tshwane early next month.

Solidarity deputy CEO Anton van der Bijl confirmed to Inside Education on Saturday that the mediation did not yield a settlement, but indicated that further negotiations would continue in the coming weeks.

Solidarity is deeply unhappy about two clauses in the Bill on language and admission policies in schools.

Following the signing of the Bill into law by President Cyril Ramaphosa in September, Sections 5 and 6, which focus on these contentious issues, have been temporarily suspended for a three-month negotiation period.

The Solidarity Research Institute (SRI) has issued a report criticising what it says is the Gauteng education department’s historical hostility towards Afrikaans single-medium schools.

It highlights “troubling” statements from Gauteng premier Panyaza Lesufi and education MEC Matome Chiloane, suggesting that the legislation could be used to undermine these schools.

SRI head Connie Mulder warned on Friday the law could become “like a brand-new axe in the hands of someone who has been itching for a long time to fell a precious tree”.

Solidarity and its allies have warned that “sparks will fly in the next two months” as they continue with their advocacy and mobilisation efforts.

Advocates for Afrikaans education argue that the amendments threaten the viability of Afrikaans-medium schools, while proponents of the changes assert that the reforms aim to promote inclusivity and equity in education.

INSIDE EDUCATION

By Johnathan Paoli

As matric learners spend the weekend preparing for their final exams that start on Monday, education MECs across the country have stressed the importance of not cheating and ensuring that the exams are fair.

Grade 12 learners and education officials signed a pledge on Friday that committed them to the National Senior Certificate examination code of conduct.

Gauteng education MEC Matome Chiloane was at Ahmed Timol Secondary School in Azaadville, Krugersdorp, where he aimed to reinforce ethical standards among Gauteng’s 189,693 preparing for the exams.

He said the commitment was crucial in combating examination irregularities and fostering a culture of honesty.

“This pledge is not just a formality; it is a commitment to ensure a fair examination process,” he said.

“Reflecting back to 2013, the Council of Education Ministers (CEM) made a critical decision and established a crucial guideline that all candidates preparing to sit for the NSC examination must commit by signing a pledge that reinforces their adherence to the examination code of conduct.”

He urged candidates to conduct themselves with integrity.

Highlighting the severe consequences of cheating, Chiloane warned that any dishonest behaviour during the exams could result in immediate removal from the exam room and nullification of results.

He explained that students found guilty of misconduct would be barred from future examination cycles, underscoring the long-term repercussions of such actions.

The MEC also cautioned against misleading information circulating on social media, including false question papers.

In KwaZulu-Natal, education MEC Sipho Hlomuka was at Siyamukela High School in the Amajuba District.

“Please act ethically and do not jeopardise the credibility of exams. We wish you well,” he said.

He further urged learners not to copy from each other and to rest well for their first exams.

INSIDE EDUCATION

By Nkhensani Chauke

The SA Democratic Teachers Union has called on local government to play a more proactive role in ensuring consistency and compliance with food handling and food safety by spaza shops and vendors.

This follows six learners dying and dozens of others being poisoned across the province in recent weeks.

Sadtu general secretary Mugwena Maluleke said educational and advocacy programmes on food safety and handling were important.

“The union is deeply disturbed by the alarming increase in the number of food poisoning cases involving learners in the month of October following the tragic death of 6 children aged between 6 and 10 from Naledi, Soweto, after they allegedly ate poisoned snacks bought from a local spaza shop,” he said 

On Thursday, 25 learners from Mshuluzane Mayisela Primary School in Zithobeni in Bronkhorspruit were taken to hospital after eating food from street vendors.

Maluleke has commended teachers and the Basic Education Department for responding immediately to the conditions and ensuring that learners received medical attention.

“These incidents highlight the need for permanent psychosocial services in our schools to assist the learners as well as the teachers when such incidents occur,” he said.

“We urge the Department of Basic Education, through the National School Nutrition Programme, to invest in food handlers in schools who are employed by school government bodies by ensuring that they receive proper training on food safety, food handling, have proper infrastructure and resources to handle, cook and serve hygienic food to the learners.”

INSIDE EDUCATION

By Akani Nkuna

Basic Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube has urged learners to prioritise their studies during the matric finals, saying it was a great investment in their future.

“You are about to embark on an exciting journey, and you get to chart what that journey looks like. On Monday you begin the journey of your life, so take it seriously and prepare hard. This is about you and your future,” Gwarube said.

The minister attended a pledge signing ceremony at Pretoria Central High School on Friday. The pledge is being signed by Grade 12 learners across the country to uphold the standards and ethics of the exams.

“Nothing is more equipping and empowering than getting that education, and you all are privileged enough to have had a good solid foundation. Now go out there and give it your all,” she said.

Pretoria Central High performed well in the preliminary exams where it produced a 92% pass rate.

Pupil and Representative Council of Learners (RCL) president Daniel Madonsela was full of enthusiasm at the signing ceremony, saying he believed his school would perform well in the National Senior Certificate exams.

“We strive to be active participants in shaping our future, and your presence here today minister I also believe it will push us to want to do well,” he said.

RCL vice president Unathi Ndubane also reiterated the ability to learners to be self-motivated.

“I for one wish to study law at University of Cape Town, and it is that desire which drives me to want to study and pass so I can achieve that dream. I know many of the students have their own goals which they will also study hard towards,” he said.

School principal Samuel Manyasha sang the praises of the teachers.

“Our Grade 12 teachers, today I want to say I cannot appreciate you enough. From January you have been with our children, and for you to have achieved the results where we are right now is truly remarkable,” he said.

“To the class of 2024, in my second year as principal of this school, you have been lovely children to work with,” Manyasha added.

Gauteng education MEC Matome Chiloane appealed to the learners to thank their teachers who had taught them throughout school.

“Learners you must appreciate your teachers; just to thank them for this 13 or 12 years. Matriculants you are here now, credit you [teachers]. They tolerated you, guided you and helped you,” he said.

Chiloane also encouraged the learners to be calm and cultivate the best state of mind to focus on the exams.

“I want to wish you well,” Chiloane added.

INSIDE EDUCATION