Educational Conundrums...

[Vox Populi Vox Dei]

The Maths standard in South Africa is very low. I finished matric last year at the maths exam was a joke. Here are the papers that I did:

Mathematics (Paper 1)

Mathematics (Paper 2)

Answers:

Mathematics Paper 1 Memo

Paper 2 Memo.

About 78 out 140 people got an A in our grade last year. That's how easy it was. Notice there is no circle geometry in Paper 2, although that does get tested in Paper 3, which isn't compulsory but will become compulsory in 2011 or 2012.

 

[smokey]

The Maths standard in South Africa is very low. I finished matric last year at the maths exam was a joke. Here are the papers that I did:

Mathematics (Paper 1)

Mathematics (Paper 2)

Answers:

Mathematics Paper 1 Memo

Paper 2 Memo.

About 78 out 140 people got an A in our grade last year. That's how easy it was. Notice there is no circle geometry in Paper 2, although that does get tested in Paper 3, which isn't compulsory but will become compulsory in 2011 or 2012.

Oy vey...

/shakes head...

 

[Jagtiger]

For starters drop the acronym names which only serve to confuse, then cut out the petty stuff that is needed at the moment, whereby kids with access to a computer are immediately at a 200% ADvantage over kids without

Agree here fully.

This year I have got a research to do and in marking guidelines it said:
2/4 - information is written.
3/4 - information is printed and colour used.
4/4 - as above, but questionnaire with expert is included.

It is clear that learners who have computer at home and internet, have complete advantage over others...
Additionally, you need to find an "expert" to answer enough simple questions, where it is almost impossible.

 

[smokey]

Agree here fully.

This year I have got a research to do and in marking guidelines it said:
2/4 - information is written.
3/4 - information is printed and colour used.
4/4 - as above, but questionnaire with expert is included.

It is clear that learners who have computer at home and internet, have complete advantage over others...
Additionally, you need to find an "expert" to answer enough simple questions, where it is almost impossible.

Bwaaaahahahaha. This is just getting ridiculous... Keep those stories coming...

 

[Morgoth]

they have been experimenting with education forever, it used to be A bond and B bond, later higher level and standard level, then OBE, then FET. this is nothing new why make such a big fuss about it.

 

[Morgoth]

The Maths standard in South Africa is very low. I finished matric last year at the maths exam was a joke. Here are the papers that I did:

Mathematics (Paper 1)

Mathematics (Paper 2)

Answers:

Mathematics Paper 1 Memo

Paper 2 Memo.

About 78 out 140 people got an A in our grade last year. That's how easy it was. Notice there is no circle geometry in Paper 2, although that does get tested in Paper 3, which isn't compulsory but will become compulsory in 2011 or 2012.

I wrote matric in 2008 did math and science at A level, without getting educated in it, there is no difference in the questions really, a bit of change here and there, to be honest governmental science was harder then A levels.

with regards to OBE education yes it is pure bull**** but it ended at grade 8 I believe and most schools, including the one I went to didn't bother to teach us half the bull**** seeing that CTA's were erm, comon sense, from grade 9 onwards FET or Standard/Higher grade took over. FET is standard grade mixed around, it caused a lot of confusion.

 

[Fazda]

they have been experimenting with education forever, it used to be A bond and B bond, later higher level and standard level, then OBE, then FET. this is nothing new why make such a big fuss about it.

No need to make a fuss if it doesn't affect you directly!!

If you had a child going into the schooling system or one who was about to enter High School, knowing that he/she was going to get a sub standard education, you might find that a "fuss" is necessary.

For as long as parents sit back and meekly accept the crap that the ANC government dishes out to them, we shall see the education system decline in this country.

OBE is an unmitigated disaster, and the government should be called to book as a result. As long as an attitude of "who gives a damn" persists, we don't stand a chance and consequently desrve the illiterate kids that it will produce!

 

[Morgoth]

No need to make a fuss if it doesn't affect you directly!!

If you had a child going into the schooling system or one who was about to enter High School, knowing that he/she was going to get a sub standard education, you might find that a "fuss" is necessary.

For as long as parents sit back and meekly accept the crap that the ANC government dishes out to them, we shall see the education system decline in this country.

OBE is an unmitigated disaster, and the government should be called to book as a result. As long as an attitude of "who gives a damn" persists, we don't stand a chance and consequently desrve the illiterate kids that it will produce!

OBE is a failure yes, I had OBE education as well but it ended in grade 8, no one ever wrote a OBE matric exam, unless I am wrong, we the grade from last year were to first lab rats of the FET exam, and I do not feel "undereducated" at varsity compared to someone who did all his subjects at a level or IEB. And no I am not exceptionally clever.

 

[Fazda]

OBE is a failure yes, I had OBE education as well but it ended in grade 8, no one ever wrote a OBE matric exam, unless I am wrong, we the grade from last year were to first lab rats of the FET exam, and I do not feel "undereducated" at varsity compared to someone who did all his subjects at a level or IEB. And no I am not exceptionally clever.

Of course you don't feel "undereducated" because you will never know the difference. If you were a matric from last year then you did write an OBE exam...you can call it FET or ABC, but it is still OBE.

It is similar to saying that you know you don't like sailing a yacht because you have never sailed one.

Like it or not, you will find, if you leave SA that you will be at a disadvantage from an educational standpoint, unless of course, you went to a school where teachers turned a blind eye to OBE and actually educated you, rather than follow a bunch of wacko systems dreamt up by so called Educational Specialists. At our school we pay lip service to OBE, but make damned sure that the kids get a decent education....unfortunately it is only achieved by adding in extra hours after school.

By saying that you are not exceptionally clever, I am not too sure what you mean...if it's the fact that you still managed to get a decent sounding matric in the end, then I rest my case. sorry...the government have shot you in the foot before you even start!

If you are concerned about rising above it, of course you can, but it would have been preferable to get the decent education whilst you were at school, rather than having to play catch up after you have left.

 

[Morgoth]

Of course you don't feel "undereducated" because you will never know the difference. If you were a matric from last year then you did write an OBE exam...you can call it FET or ABC, but it is still OBE.

It is similar to saying that you know you don't like sailing a yacht because you have never sailed one.

Like it or not, you will find, if you leave SA that you will be at a disadvantage from an educational standpoint, unless of course, you went to a school where teachers turned a blind eye to OBE and actually educated you, rather than follow a bunch of wacko systems dreamt up by so called Educational Specialists. At our school we pay lip service to OBE, but make damned sure that the kids get a decent education....unfortunately it is only achieved by adding in extra hours after school.

By saying that you are not exceptionally clever, I am not too sure what you mean...if it's the fact that you still managed to get a decent sounding matric in the end, then I rest my case. sorry...the government have shot you in the foot before you even start!

If you are concerned about rising above it, of course you can, but it would have been preferable to get the decent education whilst you were at school, rather than having to play catch up after you have left.

erm I did write a A level math and science exam because we were told that FET matric wasn't good enough ( as mention before I did not see much of a difference in the stanards of both exams), so yes I did write both of them.
Honestly do you think matric marks matters at all if you go to a university and get a degree?

I don't think so really, Last year there was a thread about how much a matric actually means, half the guys on these forums said it will only matter for the first few years. I tend to agree with them....

 

[phoneJunky]

It only matters to get into university - but some universities don't trust school results any more.

 

[Fazda]

You are missing the point entirely.

We are talking EDUCATION here, not wether you have a matric or not. Matric DOES matter when they are looking at your marks in relation to University entrance...it means little else if you are not going into an academic field, as many fine entrepeneurs will tell you.

What you HAVE missed out on is the 12 years of sound education that you are entitled to, and that the ANC seem determined to deny you.

 

[DJ...]

Honestly do you think matric marks matters at all if you go to a university and get a degree?

Depends on the degree to an extent, however it is most certainly important. I've found myself using maths I learned from school (granted that was long before you matriculated) since leaving, whether it be in a personal or business capacity.

However the one thing to remember is that being successful in mathematics not only means that you're proficient with numbers, but it reflects the way in which your mind works and can help you to approach things from a very different perspective. Not entirely sure about the standard of today's education system though - I had a squiz over my youngest sister's Grade 11 maths test and found out that they are even awarded marks for copying (yes, copying) a formula from the question sheet to their answer sheet. WTF!? I was shocked by the abysmal state of the education system...

 

[Morgoth]

You are missing the point entirely.

We are talking EDUCATION here, not wether you have a matric or not. Matric DOES matter when they are looking at your marks in relation to University entrance...it means little else if you are not going into an academic field, as many fine entrepeneurs will tell you.

What you HAVE missed out on is the 12 years of sound education that you are entitled to, and that the ANC seem determined to deny you.

so I.....guess I am part of the undereducated bunch ? Heh Matric is only one little step to get onto tertiary education for me. I passed that be that higher grade standard grade FET , IEB , OBE , A level it is or whatever you want to call it, a lot of us with the ****ty matric got into varsity, Now should I blame the government for making it to "easy" for me?

 

[Morgoth]

Depends on the degree to an extent, however it is most certainly important. I've found myself using maths I learned from school (granted that was long before you matriculated) since leaving, whether it be in a personal or business capacity.

However the one thing to remember is that being successful in mathematics not only means that you're proficient with numbers, but it reflects the way in which your mind works and can help you to approach things from a very different perspective. Not entirely sure about the standard of today's education system though - I had a squiz over my youngest sister's Grade 11 maths test and found out that they are even awarded marks for copying (yes, copying) a formula from the question sheet to their answer sheet. WTF!? I was shocked by the abysmal state of the education system...

ok yes I give you that mark allocations were ****, and lets be honest half the marks were either adapted or made up, but seeing that I am doing a course that is heavy onto math would that be surpassing ****ty education?

 

[Fazda]

so I.....guess I am part of the undereducated bunch ? Heh Matric is only one little step to get onto tertiary education for me. I passed that be that higher grade standard grade FET , IEB , OBE , A level it is or whatever you want to call it, a lot of us with the ****ty matric got into varsity, Now should I blame the government for making it to "easy" for me?

Yes I would blame the government, because no matter how you look at it you have lost out along the way. University entrance should NOT be according to the lowest common denominator.

Unless you get out of SA and go to a decent University in the UK for example, you will never know whether ior not you actually made the grade!

Remember that the guy with an IQ of 80 looks bloody brilliant amongst a bunch of mentally retarded individuals.

If that's the way you like to see yourself, over to you, it's your life, just a pity you got there via a bunch of sub standard tests along the way.

Finally, remember that the universities are going to have to weed the sub standard guys out anyway if they wish to give you a decent education...a marginal matric is simply going to push you towards the front of the queue unlees you are capable of working your guts out to keep your place.

 

[Fazda]

Depends on the degree to an extent, however it is most certainly important. I've found myself using maths I learned from school (granted that was long before you matriculated) since leaving, whether it be in a personal or business capacity.

However the one thing to remember is that being successful in mathematics not only means that you're proficient with numbers, but it reflects the way in which your mind works and can help you to approach things from a very different perspective. Not entirely sure about the standard of today's education system though - I had a squiz over my youngest sister's Grade 11 maths test and found out that they are even awarded marks for copying (yes, copying) a formula from the question sheet to their answer sheet. WTF!? I was shocked by the abysmal state of the education system...

The sad thing is that someone who has just been through the system cannot even see what the problem is with getting marks for copying!!

 

[Morgoth]

Yes I would blame the government, because no matter how you look at it you have lost out along the way. University entrance should NOT be according to the lowest common denominator.

Unless you get out of SA and go to a decent University in the UK for example, you will never know whether ior not you actually made the grade!

Remember that the guy with an IQ of 80 looks bloody brilliant amongst a bunch of mentally retarded individuals.

If that's the way you like to see yourself, over to you, it's your life, just a pity you got there via a bunch of sub standard tests along the way.

Finally, remember that the universities are going to have to weed the sub standard guys out anyway if they wish to give you a decent education...a marginal matric is simply going to push you towards the front of the queue unlees you are capable of working your guts out to keep your place.

Ok at the moment I am doing Civil Engineering at tuks ( which is heavy into maths and science) and so far I am passing everything, would you say am worked my guts out to be on a equal standard from someone who passed it last year? or do you blame the university for dropping standards? Seeing that my education according to you were equal to bantu education?

 

[Fazda]

Not at all...Bantu education was better!

 

[noxibox]

They should just get rid of OBE. I don't know how they decided it was a good idea, but it seems to have been a disaster worldwide. Perhaps because it was being used in other countries it appeared to have value.

I have been ranting a bit in another forum about education and the lack of want to do it in our youth today.

Welcome to earth. If you had visited us in the past you would find that the youth has never been keen on school.

The Math and Science int his countries primary/high schools is a shade under completely useless (unless you love the subject and have a good teacher)...

Which is also not anything new. I attended school decades ago and the majority of teachers were completely useless. And this was at schools that were considered the cream of the crop.