MAKHADO – Mbilwi Secondary School from Region 3 was honoured as Limpopo’s best performing school in the 2003 senior certificate examination. Five other schools of Region 3 featured in the list of the top 20 best performing schools.

Mbilwi had 113 candidates and the school had a 100% pass rate, as well as a 100% pass with university exemption. Education MEC Joyce Mashamba applauded the school’s perseverance, after taking second place for two years.

“It is only when all our institutions can perform like Mbilwi Secondary School and all our people are empowered, that we will be able to improve our standard of life and build our country,” Ms Mashamba said on December 30 at the province’s official function to announce the 2003 senior certificate examination results at the Oasis Motel in Polokwane.

The top schools were selected on the basis of the school’s pass rate, the number of candidates and the exemption rate. Other schools from Region 3 among the top twenty are St Brendans (108 learners, 100% pass rate and 91.7% exemption) in third position, Tshivase High (110 learners, 100% pass rate and 84.5% exemption) in fifth position, Thengwe High (141 learners, 99.26% pass rate and 80.1% exemption) in sixth position, Thohoyandou High (94 learners, 96.81% pass rate and 78.7% exemption) in ninth position and Louis Trichardt High (136 learners, 99.26% pass rate and 41.9% exemption) in the twentieth position.

While only 19 schools in Limpopo had a 100% pass rate in 2000, Re-gion 3 alone had 19 schools with a 100% pass rate in 2003, forming part of 127 schools in the province with this achievement.

The schools in Region 3 with a 100% pass rate are Almighty Learning Centre, Basopa High, Chivirikani Madonsi High, Dyelamanavha, Emmanuel Christian Centre, Eric Louw High School, Limpopo Learning Centre, Luvhengo Secondary, Matavhela Secondary, Mathede Secondary, Mbilwi Secondary, Mubalanganyi Secondary, Mukula Integrated, Nkoneni Secondary, St Augustine Residential, St Brendans, Sumbana Secondary, Tshivhase High and Waterval High.

The overall pass rate for the province was 70%. Region 3 had a pass rate of 77.53% and took third place in the top three regions of 2003. Closely in the second place was Region 2 with 72.92%. Region 4 had the best pass rate with 79.88%.

It was probably the last time that the Department would present the results according to seven regions, since Limpopo is now demarcated in six districts and not seven regions anymore.

Mashamba said that in 2001 there were still 29 dysfunctional schools in the province, meaning that they had a pass rate of between 0% and 20%. The number of dysfunctional schools this year was 17.

“We committed ourselves to reducing them until we have no dysfunctional schools left,” Mashamba said. The school that improved the most was Lucas Ratshalingwa from Region 3. Compared to 2002, they improved their pass rate with 73.6%