Behind the Scenes of Matric Season: The Teachers’ Silent Test
Every spring in South Africa, attention shifts to the hundreds of thousands of matriculants preparing for their final exams. And rightly so as these exams are a milestone, the culmination of twelve years of schooling, and a gateway to further study or the world of work.
But behind every late-night study session, every extra weekend class, and every revision timetable, there is another story unfolding. One that rarely makes the headlines. It’s the story of teachers, many of them newly qualified, who are fighting their own silent test at the very same time.
At Jakes Gerwel Fellowship (JGF), we work closely with teachers in their first years in the classroom. Through coaching, mentorship and ongoing support, we see first-hand just how heavy the load becomes in the final term of the year, especially for those teaching in Grade 12.
Teachers under pressure
For learners, the pressure of exams is clear: study hard, revise thoroughly, and perform on the day. For teachers, the pressure is multi-layered. They are not only finishing the syllabus and setting preliminary papers, but also moderating assessments, marking piles of scripts, and giving up evenings and weekends to run extra lessons.
Beyond the academic work, there is also an enormous emotional burden. Many teachers see their learners as their own children, absorbing the anxiety and fears that accompany exams. As one of our Teacher Coaches, Londiwe Majola, puts it: Teachers are often more anxious than their learners at this time of year. They carry every struggle and every possible failure as if it were their own.
The profession has, over the years, been shaped by an expectation of self-sacrifice. Teachers are asked to be educators, mentors, motivators, social workers, disciplinarians, and surrogate parents all rolled into one. Yet unlike matriculants, who have a clear timetable of study sessions and rest days, teachers often face this season without any structured support.
The unseen toll
The result is a profession stretched to breaking point. It’s not unusual for teachers to arrive at school emotionally drained, only to be met by learners carrying their own burdens of trauma, instability, or hunger. In some cases, teachers break down in coaching sessions simply because no one has asked them how they are coping.
And while teacher assistants can provide relief, they are rarely allocated to newly qualified teachers. Even when present, their tasks are often limited to administrative support, leaving the real weight of teaching and care work untouched.
It’s no surprise, then, that many teachers feel they are constantly being asked to “just push through.” This expectation depletes their wellbeing and has ripple effects on learner outcomes. Research shows that high teacher turnover can drag down performance across entire schools, not just in the classrooms that lose a teacher.
The role of coaching
At JGF, we believe that supporting teachers is not a luxury, it’s essential for the health of the education system. One of the ways we do this is through structured coaching, which creates space for teachers to be seen as humans first.
Coaching provides tools for emotional regulation, time management, and perspective. Teachers begin to collaborate with colleagues rather than carrying the load alone. Most importantly, they start to link their own wellbeing with learner success: when the teacher is well, the learner thrives.
As Londiwe observes, coaching can be the first time a teacher is given permission to pause, reflect, and strengthen their own resilience. It doesn’t fix everything, no single intervention can, but it makes a meaningful difference.
A shift in perspective
Ultimately, though, the challenge is bigger than coaching. It requires a societal shift in how we value teachers. Parents, policymakers, and communities alike need to remember that teachers are not superheroes. They are human beings working under enormous pressure, deserving of the same compassion we extend to learners during exam season.
So as the country rallies behind the more than 700,000 matrics preparing to sit their final exams, let us also take a moment to recognise the teachers who are carrying them there. The teachers marking long after midnight. Sacrificing weekends. And holding the emotional weight of entire classrooms.
This season is as much their test as it is the learners’. And while the results of the exams will soon be tallied and published, the wellbeing of the teachers who made it all possible should never be left out of the story.