Grade 12 past papers

Grade 12 English First Additional Language past papers and memos

Download all 158 Grade 12 English First Additional Language past papers and memos as free PDFs, 2014 to 2026, straight from the departments that set them.

Papers
158
Years
2014 to 2026
Exams
November (Term 4), September (Term 3), May/June (Term 2), Feb/March (Term 1)
Format
Free PDF, with memos

Download Grade 12 English First Additional Language past papers and memos

Newest first. The memo sits on the same row as the paper it belongs to, so you do not have to go looking for it.

2026

2025

2024

2023

2022

2021

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2015

2014

Grade 12 English First Additional Language exam guidelines

What is in Paper 1 and Paper 2, and what each topic is worth.

The topics, the marks and the time you get, from the Department of Basic Education's examination guidelines for English First Additional Language. Know this before you sit down with a paper and you will know what a good mark should feel like.

Paper 1: Language in context

80 marks, 2 hours

Comprehension
30 marks
Summary
10 marks
Language in context
40 marks

Paper 2: Literature

70 marks, 2½ hours

Novel
35 marks
Drama
35 marks
Short stories
35 marks

Each section is worth 35 marks and you answer two of them, based on the set works your school chose.

Paper 3: Writing

100 marks, 2½ hours

Essay
50 marks
Longer transactional text
30 marks
Shorter transactional text
20 marks

How hard is Grade 12 English First Additional Language?

Out of every 10 learners who wrote English First Additional Language, about 9 got 40% or more.

618 678 learners wrote English First Additional Language in 2025. 1 of the 9 subjects on this site are passed more often than this one.

Use that when you mark your own paper. Under 30% is a fail. 30% to 39% is a pass, but it shuts you out of most courses after school. 40% and up means you did better than about half the country.

National English First Additional Language results, 2021 to 2025
YearWrote the examGot 30% or moreGot 40% or more
2025618 67899.4%92.4%
2024583 62499.7%94.3%
2023574 96899.6%93.3%
2022609 90199.2%92.1%
2021592 00898.9%89.4%

National results for the October and November papers, from the Department of Basic Education's 2025 NSC Diagnostic Report.

All Grade 12 subjectsWhen each paper is written

Grade 12 English First Additional Language past paper questions

NB
NavyBlue Editorial Team
Higher Education Content
Published Updated Verified against DBE and provincial education department papers