An almost unnoticed problem in the South African education system is the high rate of grade repetition. In this report, a combination of household and administrative datasets is used to identify patterns in learner repetition and dropout in South African schooling and the costs associated with...

This study analysed grade 6 and grade 9 mathematics data from the Annual National Assessment by comparing school performance in public and independent schools in three geographical regions: Western Cape, Gauteng and South Africa as a whole. The aim was to see whether low-fee independent schools...

This report forms a part of a larger project funded by and undertaken on behalf of the Michael and Susan Dell Foundation. The report analyses school flows, repetition, and dropout using a novel analysis of school-based assessments, and how well these predict future performance and learner flows....

Most learners in South African schools missed at least three-quarters of a school year over the course of 2020 and 2021, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, lockdowns, school closures and rotational timetables that were introduced to maintain social distancing in classrooms. These lost school days are...