Prelims uninterrupted in Gauteng

2010-09-14 20:06

Johannesburg - Gauteng Grade 12 pupils completed their preliminary examinations without any disruptive incidents on Tuesday, the provincial department of education said.

This was with the exception of schools in Sharpeville where there was no schooling as the Congress of SA Students (Cosas) marched to the district office to hand over a memorandum of demands, spokesperson Charles Phahlane said in a statement.

He said the department was trying to resolve a dispute with Cosas which wanted prelims postponed because it believed they would merely set pupils up to fail their finals.

Cosas Gauteng provincial secretary Oagile Louw said earlier that pupils would continue protesting against writing prelims, saying they were not ready after the recent teachers' strike that lasted almost a month.

Cosas had also threatened to disrupt exams in Soweto schools, but Phahlane said pupils in the township wrote their exams without incident.

"There was a stand-off at Moletsane High in the morning but after police intervention the situation was stabilised and learners started writing at 09:30," he said.

The only incident reported in Ekurhuleni was at Zitikeni Secondary School where a student leader requested that the exams be cancelled, but other pupils did not agree and proceeded to write them.

"We are confident that police will continue to react swiftly to threats and take action to secure the safety of learners and our schools," Phahlane said.

He said the prelim exams were expected to proceed as normal on Wednesday.

"We would like to commend educators, parents and stakeholders who are making it possible for learners to catch-up and prepare for the final examinations.

"We urge learners to continue to be focused on their preparation and wish them well for the preliminary exams."

Phahlane thanked pupils and their parents for their positive attitude to the prelims and for their dedication and hard work.

- SAPA