Question NW3433 to the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education
25 October 2022 - NW3433
Motsepe, Ms CCS to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education
What steps has she taken to protect the integrity of this year’s matric examination in light of persistent load shedding by Eskom this year?
Reply:
The Department of Basic Education (DBE) in establishing the state of readiness for the National Senior Certificate (NSC) examinations has considered the impact of load shedding on the different phases of the examination cycle. Contingency plans have been put in place to address the negative impact of load shedding on critical processes. There has been communication between Eskom and DBE to prevent load shedding on certain critical days during the conduct of the examinations, that are dependent on electricity. These subjects include Computer Applications Technology (CAT), Information Technology and South African Sign Language (SASL). In addition, the heads of provincial examination units will be liaising with the provincial coordinators of Eskom to manage the load shedding. In addition, during the important processes of marking, mark capture and resulting, the sites at which these will take place, will have generators installed as a back-up option.
In the unlikely event that load shedding affects the writing of CAT and IT, the Department of Basic Education has a rewrite paper which is scheduled for 07 December 2022. Rewrite for CAT and IT is planned for every examination, given the computer glitches that could cause candidates not to complete their examinations
The security of question papers is not threatened by load shedding in any way. Provincial Education Departments (PEDs) factored this into their plans and all question papers are secure, and printing, packing and distribution will be completed on time.