“Why We Fail”: Cape Town Woman Grading a Test Paper Has SA Confused by the Questions and Answers

• A Cape Town woman shared footage of marking a student's test paper, where she gave her only 1 point out of 10
• The woman marked the answers in a way that many felt was unfair and stated that they were being taught by harsh teachers
• The video went viral with over 80,000 reactions as viewers joked this is why students fail, with parents saying they never believed kids when they complained about teachers

A Cape Town woman has left South Africans completely baffled after sharing how she marked a student's test paper. The video, posted by @zethu_mcukama on 24 September 2025, shows the woman grading a 10-question test in a way that has viewers questioning everything.

In the footage, she marks almost every answer wrong except for one maths question. For question one asking "what is the operative opposite of right," the student answered "wrong", but she marked it incorrect, writing the answer should be "left."

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Question two asked "what started in 2019?" The student wrote "coronavirus", but this was marked wrong, with the woman stating the correct answer is "Covid-19." For question three, asking how many days are in a year, the answer "365 days" was rejected in favour of "365.25 days."

Question four asked for the opposite of cold. The student answered "warm," but she wanted "hot/spicy." When asked what comes after Friday, "Saturday" was marked wrong because she wanted "weekend." For question six about which planet we live on, "Earth" was incorrect - she wanted "planet Earth."

Question seven, asking "what is 2 + 2" with the answer "4", was the only question marked correct. Question eight asked the opposite of up, and "down" was rejected for "downwards." For question nine about the first man to walk on the moon, "Neil Armstrong" was marked wrong with "Buzz Aldrin" given as the correct answer.

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The final question asked about the colour of the sky. "Blue" was marked incorrectly, with the woman writing that it should be "blue and white." She then wrote at the top that the student got 1/10 and should come see her about the poor results.

SA questions the harsh marking style

Viewers were confused by the marking approach:

@Kotlollo related:

"... And parents didn't believe us when we told them about teachers beefing with us."

@Jyrome_09 questioned:

"They didn't say what's the opposite of upwards!!?"

@Lihle_ joked:

"When your ex marks your child's paper."

@Marc 'with a C' asked:

"How did you become a teacher?"

@TSHIAMO2wolitt stated:

"No wonder we fail because we have teachers who are so ruthless."

@T compared:

"If the weapon formed against you was a person..."

@Khetha k corrected:

"Neil Armstrong is correct."

@DANNA pointed out:

"You just said up... Not upward, though?"

How matric marking actually works

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Content creator @zethu_mcukama's video appears to be a skit that got viewers wound up, as real school marking doesn't work this way. Some commenters stated that this must be the reason why so many people fail high school, but when it comes to matric marking, markers receive subject-specific memos detailing key points to look for and how to award marks.

According to RegInsights, matric marking follows a precise procedure to ensure all students are graded without bias. Qualified teachers with at least five years of experience are selected as markers and must have taught grade 12 for at least two to three years.

Umalusi maintains quality control to ensure consistency across all marking centres. If a student genuinely feels they were marked unfairly, they can request a re-mark for R116 or a re-check for R29. The marking process is monitored to guarantee fairness and standardisation, unlike the subjective approach shown in the viral video.

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Watch the TikTok clip below:

Other SA teacher-related stories

• Briefly News recently reported on teachers letting loose at a matric ball with surprising dance moves, but what students saw that strengthened their bond with teachers had people celebrating the memorable moment.
• SA was inspired by teachers showing off luxurious prized possessions in a viral challenge, but what the group's expensive items made people promise to do had viewers motivated.
• Mzansi reacted to teachers' new scrub-style uniforms that sparked debate, but what some people questioned about whether the attire fits the profession had the nation talking.

Source: Briefly News