Hon Chairperson, the IFP would like to wish all learners, especially our Grade 12 learners, the best of luck during their final examinations which started countrywide yesterday. We urge learners to approach these examinations with commitment and dedication, and with the knowledge that doing well in these examinations will be a tool to a brighter future for all. The IFP hopes that the 2009 matric pass rate will exceed the 2008 pass rate. But if the pass rate remains in a downward spiral, we hope that the government will seriously consider abandoning the outcomes-based education system.
The IFP warned from the outset that outcomes-based education was doomed in South Africa because it had failed in other countries years before the ANC- led Department of Education thought it was a workable concept for South Africa. The IFP has been vindicated by the consistently poor performance of South African learners in international maths and literacy tests.
We now need the government to invest in an education model that will see our learners emerging from school ready for further education, and as highly employable individuals in a country which is crying out for skills. I thank you.