09 Mar 2025

Francistown Senior Secondary School (FSSS) has made a commendable return to the top 10 of the Botswana General Certificate for Secondary Education (BGCSE) results.

The school has secured the 10th position with 24.57 per cent of candidates achieving six credits or better in 2024. This marked a significant improvement from 15th position in the 2023 results.

Despite being situated in the challenging environments of Kgaphamadi and Aerodrome, areas often associated with negative social influences such as substance abuse, FSSS has done well academically.

The school proudly produced two standout candidates who ranked among the nation’s top achievers. One secured 8 A* and 1 B and being the second countrywide, while the other achieved 6 A*, 2 A, and 1 B.

In an interview with the school headmaster recently, Mr Fanyana Ntaise expressed pride in the results, emphasising that the school was pleased with its achievements despite the challenges.

He noted that many of the students admitted from junior school had not performed well, with a significant number of D grades coming from those who were re-sitting the examinations.

The 24.57 percentage figure, he said, reflected only those who attained C or better, indicating that many more students were poised to advance to tertiary education.

Mr Ntaise said FSSS operated as a full-day school with approximately 1700 students, including around 800 Form Fives currently enrolled.

Sharing some strategies, which he believed would keep FSSS in the top performers list, Mr Ntaise said his school introduced motivational talks aimed to help learners in the journey of their education, which seemed to be bearing results.

“We have motivational talks that we structured in such a way that our performing learners are met them at particular times, engaging some stakeholders to help us motivate these students,” said Mr Ntaise.

He also noted that his office and the school management had intensified the monitoring and supervision in particular to checking on the books of the students, adding that doing that revealed some gaps that they could work on to fill.

Another strategy which helped them as the school to perform better, he mentioned, was the regular monitoring of students course work.

Mr Ntaise said the school  took  supervision of Saturday studies  seriously despite having a small number of teachers on the day.

As for teamwork between parents and teachers, Mr Ntaise reiterated the importance of the involvement of parents towards the education of the students.

Mr Ntaise underscored that while students were surrounded by social challenges, their behaviour remained commendable.

He acknowledged the Parents Teachers Association (PTA)’s significant role in school operations, led by an engaged chairperson who is a former teacher and counselor.

In reflecting on the school’s success, Mr Ntaise attributed it to his passion for education, his hard work and a proactive approach to his work.

He believed in starting early and maintaining a strong commitment to student development, which he sees as essential for continued success. ENDS