- No, Grade 13 will not be a new school year to follow matric and no the class of 2025 will not have to go back to school even if they pass.
- The Department of Basic Education says that the obvious joke was being shared online to “drive engagement.”
- Gauteng is set to introduce Swahili and Mandarin as new language subjects to the province’s public schools.
A piece of fake news circulating over the weekend actually had some learners fearing for their futures as it claimed that the South African Department of Education would be implementing a 13th school year and high school grade with Grade 13 following Grade 12 or matric.
Despite what was clearly a tongue-in-cheek joke aimed at high schoolers that often malign being stuck at school the whole day or other teenage complaints, the Department of Basic Education actually had to issue an official statement about it.
“Please be wary of fake news! There are no plans to add #Grade13 to the South African schooling system,” it said in an X post. The department says the sharing of fake news was done to increase engagement to their pages.
Please be wary of fake news! There are no plans to add #Grade13 to the South African schooling system. Official announcements by the Department of Basic Education are published on the DBE's official communication platforms. pic.twitter.com/DtV75gMr2u
— Dep. Basic Education (@DBE_SA) February 22, 2025
According to the initial post from a Facebook page titled Life After Matric, schools in South Africa would add another grade after grade 12 from 1st January 2026, meaning that the matric class of 2025 “will be doing Grade 13 next year.”
So many users started piling on the meme for Grade 13 next year in South Africa that many started seeing Google’s AI serve search results seemingly confirming that the news was true. We actually think there was a period of time when they did indeed happen before the AI caught on because it’s not the first time Gemini has said extremely wrong things.
What is not fake is news that the Gauteng Department of Basic Education is set to introduce KiSwahili and Mandarin into the curriculum of the province’s public schools. This is according to Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi who spoke at the Unisa International Mother Language day event last week Friday.
Ironically, Lesufi announced plans to introduce the two foreign languages as he emphasised the importance of children to learn new languages. The premier is set to formally make the announcement on Monday during his state of the province address, according to The Citizen.
