Palmridge Secondary School (Germiston)

Palmridge Secondary, Palm Ridge, Germiston. Not exactly the school the other kids at Matric rage are bragging about, but you know what, let us talk about it. 2042 learners and 62 teachers. That is not a school, that is a small city. Your teacher does not know your name, your teacher does not know your face, your teacher might not even know what subject they are teaching by period four. One teacher is basically managing 33 kids at a time, which is less a classroom and more a taxi rank where everyone is fighting for a window seat and nobody knows where they are going. But here is the thing that actually broke me. No fees. Government no-fee school. So while the kids in Sandton are paying R40,000 a year to learn the same History syllabus, Palmridge is out here doing it for free. Free. The whole government is basically running on vibes and load shedding schedules and somehow this school still pulled a 91.8% matric pass rate. With 33 kids per teacher. In Germiston. Bra, that is not a pass rate, that is a miracle. Someone at that school is working harder than a Checkers cashier on pension day. Overall verdict: Looks rough on paper, hits different in practice, Palmridge is basically the Springbok of Gauteng public schools, nobody expected it, but here we are.