The national Department of Education has released additional exemplar question papers and memoranda for certain subjects.

The subjects in which additional exemplars were developed are Accounting, Mathematics, Physical Sciences, History, English First Additional Language and Life Sciences. These exemplars are provided as added support to the first cohort of candidates to write the National Senior Certificate.

Schools have already been provided with a complete set of exemplars in the first term of 2008. There have also been preparatory papers for certain subjects available at the beginning of October. Besides the exemplars in grade 12, this year's cohort of candidates have also received exemplars in grades 10 and 11 during 2006 and 2007 respectively. They also wrote a full scale grade 11 examination with an intensive timetable as occurs during grade 12 in 2008.

The criteria for passing grade 12 is as follows: Candidates need to offer 7 subjects and produce the school based assessment for all seven subjects including Life Orientation where there is no external examination. Besides the compulsory offering of Life Orientation, candidates must also offer a Home Language, another language at least at First Additional Language level, Mathematics or Mathematical Literacy and three other recognised subjects. They then need to pass the Home Language at 40% or more, two other subjects at 40% or more and then three subjects at 30%. There are no condonations in the National Senior Certificate as was the case in the previous Senior Certificate.