School's stunning change in fortunes

IN A PACKED school hall in Hout Bay, the atmosphere was thick with nerves, pride and disbelief as the Class of 2025 at Silikamva High School waited for their matric results.

- MURRAY SWART

For many of the learners, this hall had been a place of pressure just weeks earlier, rows of desks filling the space as final exams loomed. On results day, it became the setting for history: a 100% matric pass rate, the first since the school opened its doors in 2013.

For a Quintile 3 no-fee school serving the informal settlement of Imizamo Yethu, the milestone carries weight far beyond percentages. In 2019, Silikamva's matric pass rate stood at just over 40%. Six years later, the turnaround tells a story of consistency, discipline and an unrelenting focus on learning in the face of deep socioeconomic challenges.

Principal Siphathisiwe Nkahla-Nkohla described the results as a defining moment for the school and its community. “The results are quite an achievement for us. Our pass rate was around 40% in 2019, but it has been going up, so this is a big one,” she said.

She credits the improvement to a deliberate culture shift. “The secret to our success is making the learners know that education matters. Our teachers are phenomenal and are always here working. Seeing them over the weekends is a norm at our school, so we have been able to adopt a true culture of learning.”

That culture is underpinned by relentless self-assessment. At the start of every year, the school sets its sights on a 100% pass rate. “We look at our data at the end of every term and analyse our results to see where we are going wrong and which subjects aren't doing so well, so we can come up with strategies to improve,” Nkahla-Nkohla said.