Missing mathematicians: Why South Africa must back bright black learners

(This article first appeared in the Business Day on 31 January 2025. Peter Courtney is at the Research on Socio-Economic Policy (RESEP) unit at Stellenbosch University and a PhD candidate at the Vrije University Amsterdam; Claire Bisseker is an economic writer and researcher at the Bureau for Economic Research (BER), [email protected] .?You can read the full the article here.)

The recent matric results have put South Africa’s education system in the spotlight. It is widely accepted that an education is one of the most powerful ways to uplift people and transform societies. But not any education will do. Several studies show that it is the quality of education that drives economic development, not pass rates or years of schooling. Countries with better quality education grow faster.

The recent matric results have put South Africa’s education system in the spotlight. It is widely accepted that an education is one of the most powerful ways to uplift people and transform societies. But not any education will do. Several studies show that it is the quality of education that drives economic development, not pass rates or years of schooling. Countries with better quality education grow faster.

In the 2023 Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (Timss), South African Grade 4 learners finished last in both mathematics and science. And, as several studies show, there is a strong correlation between economic growth and test scores.

In Western Cape public schools around 23,000 black learners took the 2023 National Senior Certificate (NSC) exam, but only 100 earned an ‘A’ in maths. Similarly, just 168 out of about 27,000 coloured learners also achieved distinctions in maths.

The challenge is how to build an education system that produces higher quality pass marks, particularly in the STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) subjects so that learners are better equipped for tertiary study and the demands of the job market.

According to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco), South Africa invests an exceptional 6.5% of its GDP in public education, ranking eighteenth globally, with educator salaries consuming about one in every ten rands of government expenditure.

Our progressive tax system relies heavily on a small cohort of top earners who were likely high academic achievers in their youth. 2 South Africa has some of the highest returns to education in the world. Investing in highpotential learners could, therefore, have an outsized impact on improving the fiscal sustainability of public education.

Moreover, equity would be enhanced if historically disadvantaged learners were targeted. In short, investing in the brightest learners in the poorest schools could simultaneously advance equity and long-term economic growth.

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