Halala! Agri matrics shine despite tough year

For the matrics of 2022, school was officially over when they finally received their final results on Friday – and there is much to celebrate. Following two years of producing poor results, the Tjetje Technical School in Sehlakwane village, Limpopo is beaming with pride after obtaining a 74.1% pass rate.

While the national grade 12 pass rate is 80.1%, no one is as proud as Thapelo Manana who clinched a bachelor’s degree pass for access to a university, and fellow Tjetje learner Makwela Mahlatse who bagged distinctions in agricultural studies and life sciences.

An overjoyed Manana told Food For Mzansi his results is testimony to his hard work and encouragement from his teachers. 

Making his teachers proud

“I am very happy. I did not expect to pass with these marks, they [results] took me by surprise. In the year 2022, our teachers were there for us, so I really had to work hard and ensure that I do not let them down,” he said.

“A positive attitude towards my studies made a huge difference, it was not easy but going the extra mile never killed anyone. I am going to study at the Vaal University of Technology where I will be studying agricultural sciences,” he said.

Meanwhile, Mahlatse said she is satisfied with her results. “I feel I could have achieved more distinctions, but it is what it is. I believe I worked hard. It was not easy, but I pulled through.

“I have applied at the University of Johannesburg for a food technology course, and I have not received the correspondence yet. I want to study something related to agriculture because I like it,” Mahlatse said.

Isaac Khumalo, who is the head of the department for agriculture at the school, could not be prouder. According to Khumalo, it was not an easy year for their matrics, but an all-hands-on-deck approach help them bag a 36.1% improvement from 2021. The previous year they improved by 29.2%.

Thriving in a rocky environment

“It is a remarkable performance because we had 40% of our matrics attending initiation school,” he pointed out. “Load shedding was also impacting us, we could not do evening classes to catch up.”

Motau Themba is one of the learners who missed out on the entire second term of school to attend initiation school.

“I am happy even though I did not get what I had set the target for, but it is not less than what I had aimed for. I worked hard and I am proud of myself. I want to go to the University of Mpumalanga to study for a degree in farming,” he said. 

The school also had a shortage of teachers. Khumalo believes that anything is possible and said they had their eyes on a 100% pass rate for the 2023 academic year. “If we multiply our efforts and focus on our vision, we hope to produce better results than this,” he said. 

Shining against all odds 

Nicholas Ratel from Jan Kriel school in Kuils River in the Western Cape said though he passed, it was not the results he had hoped for.

Ratel has dyslexia and ADHD (a chronic condition including attention difficulty, hyperactivity and impulsiveness), and said many people had written him off. 

“I was studying agricultural management. I was the only one who was, as well as agricultural technology. I think I tried my best. I had a lot of negative [reactions] because I was not able to read and write properly like other kids. Some believed that I would not make it but I worked hard to prove to them that I can achieve better results. It was a complex examination but I think I gave my best,” he said. 

Ratel’s heart’s desire is to study agriculture in the United States. He said he wants to bring the expertise and knowledge back to South Africa. 

“It will be a great exposure for me to go learn agriculture in America and come back to implement what I have learned. I have still not decided between going abroad or going to study at Stellenbosch University,” he told Food For Mzansi.

Meanwhile Jan Kriel obtained 100% pass rate. 

Boland Landbou does it again!

Meanwhile, NS Fourie who achieved 85% in agriculture studies from Hoër Landbouskool Boland outside Paarl, said he worked hard last year and is happy with the results he received.

“I feel proud of the mark I achieved, I set myself a target and worked hard to achieve it. This year I am going to study Bsc Agri viticulture and oenology at the University of Stellenbosch.”

Hoër Landbouskool Boland achieved yet another 100% pass rate, getting recognition from the department of basic education as one of the schools that have been consistent with its grade 12 success rate.

ALSO READ: Limpopo teacher ignites passion for agriculture

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