Hon Chair, the General Education Certificate, GEC, is envisaged to be registered at level one of the national qualification and it is intended to provide qualifying learners with applied competence on a basis of further learning.
We believe that this qualification will provide standardized benchmark against which schools can compare their internal assessment standards. It will also provide the system with the quality assurance mechanism that will be used to measure learner performance, knowledge and values.
It is structured to provide requirements that will ensure them with appropriate skills and help us to monitor the system. It will serve as an entry to level two qualifications which is offered across the system. It is aligned to the qualifications offered through the South African National Qualifications Framework. Learners obtaining the GEC can continue their learning; it is not an exit certificate. They can continue their learning through three parts, general academic, technical vocational and technical occupational pathways. Thank you.