The percentage of children attending early childhood development facilities increased significantly between 2002 and 2012. In the same
vein, more children benefitted from the government’s no-fee schools programme. In 2013, 62.4 per cent of children over the age of 5 years
did not pay school fees. According to the Department of Basic Education’s preliminary data, in 2014 there were 31 learners per teacher in
public ordinary schools (excluding independent schools) compared to a ratio of 34:1 in 2004. Since 2010, the ratio has remained constant
at 30:1.
Matric remains a key milestone for school-to-work transition, and the National Senior Certificate pass rate improved from 73.3 per cent in
2003 to 78.2 per cent in 2013. However, there are variations across provinces, with rural provinces showing weaker performances than
urban areas like Gauteng and the Western Cape. The aggregate also does not account for dropout rates among the matric cohort.
Student participation rates for the coloured and Indian populations between the ages of 18 and 29 years decreased between 2002 and
2013 but, generally, the white and Indian populations in this age group had higher student participation rates than their black African and
coloured counterparts. Men were more likely to attain Masters and Doctoral qualifications than women, and were more likely to qualify in
the fields of science, engineering and technology.