Minister Schäfer wishes candidates well for the June NSC and SC examinations

The combined National Senior Certificate (NSC) and Senior Certificate (SC) exams began in the province without incident yesterday. The exams continue until 7 July 2021.

June session in numbers

27 506 candidates are registered for the exams in the Western Cape, including 12 605 who wrote their matric in 2020 but are seeking to improve their results, and 14 901 adults and out-of-school young people writing the SC.

I wish all of these candidates the very best and urge communities not to disrupt the exams in any way. Everyone deserves the opportunity to write their exams in the best possible circumstances, and disruptions will only harm the candidates themselves.

Over 900 invigilators will oversee the exams at 217 exam centres across our eight education districts. Covid-19 protocols are being followed at all exam venues – including wearing masks, daily screening, sanitising hands and surfaces, and physical distancing. Our invigilators were formally trained in implementing these protocols last year, and refresher sessions have taken place prior to the current exam session.

Covid-19 protocols and vaccines

We have seen Covid-19 cases rise in the past few weeks across the country. It is crucial that we continue to implement safety protocols, whether at school or elsewhere. It has been a long time since we re-opened schools with these measures in place, but this does not mean we can afford to be complacent.

A key part of our fight against Covid-19 is the rollout of vaccines, which has moved on to phase two (persons 60 years and older). Our learners and young people have a crucial role to play in assisting anyone who is less tech-savvy than they are to register on the database for their Covid-19 vaccine.

I urge our learners to take just 6 minutes of their time to help to register any relative of theirs, who is 60 years or older (after school hours of course). It’s our learners’ turn to help their elders and to protect them against this virus.

Visit www.westerncape.gov.za to find out more.