An hour before newspapers were delivered to a garage in Zola, Soweto, Matshidiso Pule, pictured, was slipping in and out of panic. She would speak of her confidence about her matric results and a minute later worry about the outcome should she fail.
The Saturday Star spent the evening waiting with Pule and accompanied her to buy the newspaper to see her results.
“Failing doesn't mean it's the end of the world. We can write supplementary exams should we qualify,” she said on a drive to a petrol station shop just before midnight.
“It's easy to succumb to depression. Imagine your peers dancing and singing but you curl up in a corner with tears in your eyes after not seeing your exam number in the paper.”
She said she had been thinking about both outcomes during the festive season and was ready to learn her fate.
Dozens of learners from Kwadedangendlale High School had pitched up at the same petrol station waiting anxiously for the newspaper delivery van.
Within minutes there were shouts of excitement, echoes of vuvuzelas and cars revving. Pule got her hands on a newspaper. She sang and danced with her friends. She had passed! Of the 188 learners at Kwadedangedlale who wrote matric exams in 2017, 148 passed, giving the school a 78.7% pass rate.
Of the 148 who passed, 43.2% achieved a bachelor's pass, 31.8% a diploma pass and 25% a certificate pass. Pule plans to join the military. Her dream is to pursue a career in the South African Navy.