Polokwane - Limpopo's education department is optimistic that it achieved at least a 60% matric pass rate in 2010.
This is compared to the disappointing pass rate of 48.9% in 2009.
"Last year we worked very hard to improve our matric results. We organised massive winter classes and went into partnership with SABC radio and newspapers to help us with supplements for Grade 12 learners," said department spokesperson, Pat Kgomo, on Tuesday.
"So, come rain or shine, we expect education MEC Dickson Masemola to announce on Thursday that we have exceeded our target of a 60% pass rate. It will be very disappointing to achieve less than that."
Altogether, 105 000 Grade 12 pupils in the province wrote the exams last year. Of these, 49 500 candidates were registered for mathematics and 39 600 for physical science.
"We hope they do well because these two subjects contribute a lot to the future of the country, not just Limpopo," Kgomo said.
Provincial chair of the South African Democratic Teachers Union (Sadtu), Ronnie Morwatshehla, said that despite the three-week-long public servant wage strike in August, teachers in the province did all they could to prepare the Grade 12 pupils for the exams.
"We are also optimistic as Sadtu that there will be a considerable improvement in the matric results, despite the pitfalls we had last year," said Morwatshehla.
Kgomo said that all systems were in place for the start of the 2011 academic year.
"All schools have already received learner and teacher support material for the 2011 school year. More that 99% of our schools have already registered their learners, although some parents will always arrive at the last minute to register their children," he said.
He added that mobile classes were bought for the areas affected by hailstorms that destroyed some schools in the province in October.
Affected areas include Burgersfort, Tzaneen and some parts of Polokwane.
"We have placed mobile classes at those schools and hopefully the provincial government will fix the buildings in this year," Kgomo said.
