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Primary and secondary education in Mpumalanga is not in a good condition, the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) reports in a series of nine provincial publications on this issue. Only 47% of Grade 12 learners in Mpumalanga passed the matriculation examination in 1996, placing the province eighth and only ahead of the Northern Province, where the matric pass rate was close to 38%. The Mpumalanga pass rate for English was fifth highest in the country, while it was seventh for biology and eighth for mathematics and physical science. The Longitudinal Survey of Scholastic Achievement ? which aims to provide information on the level of knowledge and understanding of mathematics, science and English at Grade 9 level ? confirmed that, compared to the other provinces, Mpumalanga had the third lowest means for mathematics, science and English. The results of the Third International Mathematics and Science Survey (TIMSS) also confirmed that learners from Mpumalanga had scored below the national average for both mathematics and science at the Grade 7 and Grade 8 levels. The provincial reports provide information about an education database at individual school level and include data from several HSRC projects such as the School Register of Needs Survey, the Longitudinal Survey of Scholastic Achievement, the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) and the Register of Graduates. The educational indicators included in this series of publications provide information on the condition of educational facilities and the extent of the educational provision. The availability of resources, materials, equipment and services is also discussed. Indicators of the outputs of the educational system are the matriculation results, the findings of the Longitudinal Survey of Scholastic Achievement in Mathematics, Science and English and the results of the TIMSS. "The HSRC wants to make this valuable information available to all who could benefit from it. Reliable and accessible information on education is increasingly becoming a prerequisite for informed decisions on policy and priorities in education", Mr Charles Sheppard, Director of Education and Training Information Systems at the HSRC said. The School Register of Needs Survey ? constituting one of the most extensive data-gathering and information analysis projects in the country that was conducted at 32 000 schools ? revealed that half the school buildings in Mpumalanga needed paint and minor repairs. Approximately 10% of the schools were deemed unsuitable for teaching. More than two-thirds of the schools were without media equipment and collections, materials and general equipment. Very few schools totally lacked stationery and textbooks, although the majority of schools in the province were inadequately supplied. At more than a third of the schools there was no furniture for administrative use. Other furniture for educators and learners was also lacking, and a small percentage of schools had none of the furniture listed above. The estimated number of desks and chairs needed for learners exceeded 100 000. More than 85% of the schools in Mpumalanga completely lacked libraries, laboratories and other specialised facilities. An additional worrisome fact is that more than 100 schools used shelters as locations of instruction. Although three-quarters of the schools had access to water, only half had electricity, and about a third had certain telecommunications services. Nearly 100 000 learners did not have access to toilet facilities on the school grounds ? inconceivable as it may sound. Mpumalanga also had a high percentage of over-age learners (i.e. three or more years older than the average for the grade, with the average for Grade 1 seven years), especially in the secondary grades, where more than 24% of the learners were too old for the grade in which they were enrolled. The HSRC also collected data concerning certain socio-economic variables, for example the availability of electricity, running water in the house, water-borne sewerage and a separate bedroom for the learner. The average ranking of these variables indicated that the situation in Mpumalanga was second worst compared to the other provinces. A comparison of the 1985 and 1994 data recorded in the HSRC's Register of Graduates showed that the percentage of white graduates residing in Mpumalanga had decreased by almost 28%, while over the same period the number of African graduates had increased by close to 25%. According to the data there was also an increase in the number of human and management sciences graduates and a slight decrease in the percentage who had qualified in the medical sciences. A fairly large drop in the number of natural sciences graduates was also revealed.
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