Johannesburg – SECTION27 has launched a judicial review application in the Limpopo Division, Polokwane of the High Court on behalf of 50 former Matric learners from Baphutheng Senior Secondary School.
The former learners are challenging decisions that found them guilty of “group copying” during their final 2024 National Senior Certificate (NSC) Matric examinations.
The disputed decisions, taken by the Acting Head of Department and upheld by the MEC for Education in Limpopo, relate to Business Studies Paper 1 and Economics Paper 2.
“As a result, the learners’ results have been withheld for more than a year, placing their education, employment prospects, and futures on hold,” SECTION27 said on Tuesday, 13 January 2026.
“The allegation against the learners was based solely on the fact that their examination answers were similar.”
SECTION27 said the Limpopo Department of Education has not furnished any evidence of cheating or group copying.
Furthermore, no learner was found in possession of notes or unauthorised material, and there was no evidence of communication or coordination observed in the examination venues.
The invigilators also confirmed that there were no irregularities at any stage of the examinations.
“What the Limpopo Department of Education has characterised as ‘group copying’ is, in truth, the foreseeable outcome of how teaching and learning occur at Baphutheng Senior Secondary School, an under-resourced public school with limited access to textbooks, no library, and learning support materials,” said SECTION27.
“In response to these constraints, educators employed creative and practical teaching methods to ensure learners could understand and retain complex content.
“These included structured oral learning, group recitation, and subject-based songs to memorise key concepts and essay frameworks.”
SECTION27 said these methods were used openly and consistently throughout the academic year.
Learners practised together in classrooms and on school grounds, reciting and singing content as part of their preparation.
“This approach, confirmed by educators and the former principal, was designed to compensate for material shortages and to support comprehension and recall,” said SECTION27.
“It also explains why learners produced similar, though not identical, responses during examinations.
“The disciplinary process that followed was fundamentally unfair.”
Learners were subjected to intimidating and coercive questioning, confronted with shifting accusations, and denied a meaningful opportunity to respond.
Their explanations were not properly interrogated or tested.
SECTION27 said attempts to submit corroborating evidence, including video recordings demonstrating the teaching and learning methods used at the school, were disregarded.
“The appeal to the MEC failed to address these defects and merely endorsed the original findings without engaging with the substance of the learners’ case,” SECTION27 said.
“The consequences have been devastating.
“By withholding their results, authorities have excluded these learners from further study and employment opportunities.”
SECTION27 said university application cycles have passed, job prospects have been lost, and the stigma of being labelled “cheaters” has followed them in their communities.
“For many, the emotional and psychological impact has been profound,” SECTION27 said.
“This case exposes a systemic injustice in the education system.
“Learners from under-resourced schools are punished not for misconduct, but for succeeding through methods shaped by poverty and necessity.”
SECTION27 said that when achievement does not conform to the norms of privilege, it is met with suspicion rather than support.
“In this way, inequality is not only reproduced but enforced.”
Through this application, SECTION27 said it seeks an order reviewing and setting aside the decisions of the Acting Head of Department and the MEC, directing that the learners’ NSC results be released, and affirming that context-responsive and innovative teaching methods cannot be used as a basis to strip learners of their futures.
