By: Dwight Links
There is still a degree of misunderstanding and lack of knowledge from parents and guardians of thousands of young Namibians regarding various secondary education systems in the country.
These are the sentiments of Eva-Panduleni Beukes, a chemist from the Science & Mathematics Program, which tutors learners in preparation for final examination periods in secondary school.
Drawing a parallel to the Cambridge GCSE system that Namibian secondary schools had more than 10 years ago, Beukes explains that the country migrated from the Cambridge system to implement localised Ordinary and Higher Education before reaching the current Advanced Subsidiary Levels.
A path that can be viewed as the country trying to find its own educational identity.
“If we look at this – for those Namibians that remember the IGCSE and HIGCSE system of Cambridge – the AS Levels are very similar to this. And more precisely is that it resembles the Higher GCSE level,” Beukes explained.
A further explanation is provided on what level the Ordinary Level (NSSCO) is, which is similar to the former IGCSE – which was in use more than 10 years ago. The last cohorts were just before 2010.
“Another comment that many Namibians will use is that they will say the AS and NSSCO are the Namibian systems, but what they do not realise is that both the AS/NSSCO and the Cambridge systems are accredited by the same authority,” Beukes added.
“The Namibian system is based on the Cambridge system: their syllabi are similar, the topics they cover are similar,” she highlighted.
SELECTING PATHWAYS
Under the Cambridge system, the learners had the opportunity to select whether to pursue the Higher IGCSE or the regular IGCSE route, with the regular level having Ordinary and Lower levels to it.
Beukes shared that this allowed learners in the 1990s to 2000s to select some subjects on the Higher level and some on the Ordinary or even Lower IGCSE.
“The ones that selected the HIGCSE were usually learners who knew that they wanted to go to university. It was a higher level preparing you for university. And most schools would prepare the learner for this in Grade 11, so it would be a two-year program,” stated Beukes.
“Since it prepares you for tertiary level, it prepares the learner for more analytical thinking, which would include problem-solving and more,” she clarified.
The NSSCO, which was the system in the 2010s and which ended in 2020, was also similar in the training and education outcomes as the system preceding it, according to Beukes.
Beukes said a few changes were made to the Grade 11 level – so as to be similar to the private school IGCSE – and the AS Level is good for the same preparation for tertiary education.
“The issue that arises is that until Grade 11, all schools prepare the learners to the same level. Irrespective of whether you’re a poor performer or an academic achiever. So, if you’re academically better off, you advance onwards,” she explained.
The timeframe for the adoption or possible adaptation of the teenager to be molded by the AS Levels system is too short a period, according to Beukes.
“The issue is you have only nine months to develop problem-solving skills and analytical thinking, whereas you were not prepared beforehand for this,” she highlighted.
MINISTERIAL GOALS
In the recent 2026 ministerial statement on the 2025 performance of the NSSC Ordinary and the Advanced Subsidiary, Education Minister Sanet Steenkamp indicated that the education and examinations are developed in partnership with the University of Cambridge from the UK.
“Our partnership with the Cambridge University Press & Assessment remains integral to our commitment of maintaining the highest standards of national examinations,” remarked Steenkamp.
Confirming that the Cambridge University Press & Assessment also issues the certification for learners at both levels, Steenkamp noted that the benchmarking is maintained this way through the same validation used by the international authority.
Last year, 38,692 learners sat for the full-time NSSCO exams, compared to 40,757 in 2024. For part-time learners, this number was 42,819 in 2025, versus 39,002 for 2024.
This increase in part-time learners, according to the ministry, was a result of learners seeking a second chance to improve their examination outcomes.
