Seotlong As/S (Phuthaditjhaba)

Okay listen, Seotlong As/S in Phuthaditjhaba, Free State. No fees. Government funded. 696 learners and only 27 teachers trying to hold the whole thing together. That is a 25.8 to 1 ratio, bru. That teacher is not teaching a class, that teacher is managing a small informal settlement. By the time Sir gets to the back row to answer a question, the kid in front has already graduated and opened a spaza shop. Now I know what you are thinking, "but at least the fees are free." Yes. Free. As in zero rands. As in the school fund meeting was the shortest meeting in history because there was nothing to discuss. No fancy blazer with a crest that looks like a medieval shield, no "optional" laptop levy that is definitely not optional, no R45 000 a year for a swimming pool the learners use twice. Just government money, chalk if they are lucky, and vibes. But here is the part that makes me want to sit down and think about my life choices. 100% matric pass rate. One hundred percent. Not 98, not "we are aiming for 95." All of them. Every single learner who sat in those overcrowded classrooms with one teacher watching 26 people at once, in Phuthaditjhaba, with zero fees and zero frills, passed. Some of your fancy R50k a year schools in the Southern Suburbs could never. Overall verdict: Seotlong is basically doing more with nothing than most schools do with everything, and that is both inspiring and a serious burn to every school with a bursary gala dinner.