33 questions answered · 100 marks · North West DoE
Life Orientation Grade 10 NW November 2025 Questions and Answers
Every question from the Provincial Examination (North West DoE, November 2025), with a full answer written from the Grade 10 Life Orientation textbook and the official marking approach. Open a question to see its answer, or use Hide answers to practise first.
Instructions
Three sections: Section A (20 marks) and Section B (40 marks) are compulsory. In Section C answer any TWO of the three questions (40 marks). Answer in full sentences; Section C answers must be written in paragraphs.
Section A
12 questionsB: Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women.
CEDAW is the United Nations body linked to the convention that aims to end all forms of discrimination against women. It is one of the international human rights instruments South Africa has signed. The other options are made-up names.
C: Desmond Tutu, Sophie de Bruin, Helen Suzman, Charlotte Maxeke.
These people spoke out and organised against apartheid laws and the unfair treatment of black people and women. Options A and B list modern entertainers and sports people, and option D mixes in people who were not part of the struggle against apartheid.
C: Unfair, different, biased or prejudiced treatment of a person or group based on gender, sex, race, culture etc.
Discrimination happens when a person or group is treated unfairly because of who they are, for example their race, gender, religion or culture. The other options describe the right to protest, freedom of expression and lying.
B: A person's sexual or gender identity in relation to the gender of the people the person is attracted to romantically.
Sexual orientation describes who a person is romantically and sexually attracted to, for example people of the opposite sex, the same sex or both. Option A describes a stereotype and option C describes discrimination.
A: A United Nations campaign that takes place every year from 25 November to 10 December that aims to eliminate violence against women and children.
The 16 Days of Activism campaign runs each year from 25 November to 10 December (Human Rights Day). It raises awareness about violence against women and children and calls on everyone to help end it.
Strengths (abilities).
Your strengths are the things you do well because of your talents, knowledge and skills, and knowing them helps you choose suitable subjects and careers.
Career field.
A career field groups jobs that need similar skills and knowledge and happen in similar work settings, for example the health or engineering field.
Gender stereotyping.
Gender stereotyping is when fixed ideas about what men and women can or should do are used to decide which jobs or roles each gender gets.
Life roles are the different identities and responsibilities a person takes on in the various areas and stages of their life, for example being a learner, a child, a friend, a worker or a parent.
Adolescents often experience mood swings because of the hormonal changes taking place in their bodies, so they may feel happy one moment and angry or sad the next.
Teenagers often have more conflict with their parents because they are trying to become independent and form their own identity.
Three ways in which the need for acceptance by a peer group can negatively impact on adolescents' family relationships are:
- Adolescents may value their friends' opinions more than their family's rules, which leads to arguments and conflict at home.
- They may spend most of their time with friends, which makes family members feel neglected and weakens family bonds.
- They may copy their friends' behaviour even when it goes against family values, which causes tension and a loss of trust with their parents.
Section B
12 questionsPoverty remains one of the most serious problems facing societies around the world today. It is more than just a lack of money; it is the absence of basic needs such as food, shelter, education, electricity and healthcare. Poverty limits people's opportunities and prevents communities from achieving their full potential.
[Accessed: 13 October 2025]
Social justice is the principle that every person deserves equal rights, equal opportunities and fair treatment in society, and that unfair situations should be put right.
Two harmful effects of poverty on personal health are:
- Poor people cannot afford nutritious food, which can lead to malnutrition.
- They struggle to pay for medical care, so illnesses are often left untreated.
Two ways in which a lack of basic services like electricity can negatively impact on learners' performance are:
- Without proper lighting at home, learners cannot study or complete their homework after dark, so they fall behind in their work.
- Learners cannot use computers, the internet or charge their phones, so they are unable to do research for their projects and assignments.
Two ways in which teenage pregnancy can contribute to poverty are:
- Teenage mothers often drop out of school, which reduces their chances of getting a good, well-paying job later.
- Raising a child costs money that most teenagers do not have, so they depend on their parents or government grants, which increases the financial burden on the family.
Youth should report crime because it helps the police to catch offenders and prevent further crimes, which keeps everyone in the community safe.
Two measures that the community can implement to deal with poverty are:
- The community can start food gardening projects so that families grow their own food and sell the extra produce, which reduces hunger and generates an income.
- The community can offer skills training programmes in entrepreneurship so that people learn how to start small businesses, which creates jobs and income in the area.
Self-esteem and self-confidence are often used interchangeably. However, they are very different. They may both be a result of self-awareness, but they differ in how they influence the physical, emotional and psychological growth of an individual. They are therefore products of a person being in a relationship with others in the environment they find themselves in.
[Adapted from https://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/]
Self-awareness is having a clear and conscious knowledge of who you are, including your strengths, weaknesses, interests, attitudes and skills.
Three benefits of being self-aware are:
- You know what you can and cannot do.
- You can choose subjects, careers and friends that suit your abilities and interests.
- You know when to ask for help with things you find difficult.
Self-esteem is how you feel about yourself and how much you value your own worth as a person, whereas self-confidence is your belief in your ability and skills to do certain things.
Two ways in which the media could negatively affect the development of a young person's self-esteem are:
- The media often shows slim, tall or flawless people as the ideal of beauty, which makes young people who do not look like that feel inadequate about their bodies.
- The media shows luxurious lifestyles as something everyone should have, so young people who cannot afford them feel like failures and start to resent themselves.
Two ways in which parents could contribute to lowered levels of self-esteem in their children are:
- Parents may set unrealistic expectations that their children cannot reach, which makes the children feel that they are never good enough.
- Parents may criticise or make negative comments when their children fail at something, which makes the children feel useless and worthless.
Two ways in which I could assist my friends to deal with negative emotions arising from lowered self-esteem are:
- I could use good communication skills and listen to them with empathy, so that I can reassure them of their worth, which helps them feel valued and understood.
- I could encourage them to complete small tasks and projects successfully, because each success builds their energy to try more, which helps them trust in their own abilities.
Section C
9 questionsHuman trafficking is one of the most serious human rights violations in the world today. It is often called modern-day slavery because it involves the exploitation of people through force, fraud or deception. Millions of men, women and children fall victim to traffickers every year, losing their freedom, dignity and basic human rights.
[Source: ChatGPT, accessed 14 October 2025]
Four human rights that can be violated through human trafficking are:
- The right to freedom from slavery and forced labour.
- The right to human dignity.
- The right to freedom and security of the person.
- The right to freedom of movement.
Four negative impacts of human trafficking on the society are:
- Communities become unsafe, which discourages investment and tourism in the area.
- It destroys families when members disappear, which causes great emotional distress.
- People live in fear and stop trusting one another, so the community loses its social cohesion.
- It increases crime, because trafficking is often linked to drug smuggling and violence in the community.
Two practical strategies that parents could implement to prevent human trafficking in the community are:
- Parents could keep open and honest communication with their children. When children feel safe to talk, they are less likely to keep secrets and will tell their parents about strangers or fake job offers that seem suspicious. This allows parents to step in early, so children are protected from being lured by traffickers.
- Parents could monitor their children's online activities and teach them how traffickers use social media to recruit victims. Children then learn to spot fake profiles and too-good-to-be-true offers and to keep personal information private. This helps them use online platforms safely and prevents grooming.
Physical inactivity can place a burden on the health system, and lead to premature death or disability from injuries such as falls. It is estimated to cost the Australian economy over $15 billion each year.
Research suggests over a third of the total burden of disease experienced by Australians may be prevented by modifying lifestyle risk factors such as increasing your level of physical activity. If we are active, not only are we likely to reduce body fat, but also our risk of obesity, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and some cancers.
[Adapted from https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au]
Four safety measures to be considered when participating in physical activities are:
- Warm up before and cool down after the activity to prevent muscle injuries.
- Wear suitable clothing and shoes for the activity.
- Make sure the playing area is free from hazards.
- Drink enough water to prevent dehydration.
Two social benefits and two mental benefits of participating in physical activities are:
- Social: Physical activities bring people together, which promotes social interaction and unity.
- Social: You meet new friends while playing, which develops your communication skills.
- Mental: Exercise relaxes and clears the mind, which makes it easier to manage stress in daily life.
- Mental: Regular activity improves your concentration, which helps to improve your academic performance.
Two ways in which communities can motivate youth to participate in physical activities are:
- Communities can improve access to safe sports facilities that cater for everyone, such as fields, courts and community halls. When youth have safe places to play close to home, they are more likely to take part regularly. This keeps them off the streets and away from activities such as substance abuse and crime.
- Communities can organise games and tournaments with incentives such as prizes or trophies. The rewards motivate young people to join and keep participating. Their free time is then spent on healthy activities instead of risky behaviour, which improves their health and well-being.
Many teachers believe that learners seem to be unable to cope with the demands of being a learner, hence the high failure rate, especially in Grade 10. Can it be that learners do not manage their time effectively, or that despite all the time they spend studying, they still fail?
[Source: anonymous]
Four study methods that can be used for effective studying are:
- Plan and schedule your study time.
- Take notes and summarise the key points while you study.
- Use memory techniques, such as mnemonics, that work for you.
- Test yourself to find the gaps in your knowledge.
Four reasons why it is important to consider socio-economic factors when choosing a career are:
- Knowing your family's financial situation helps you plan how to pay for your studies, so you avoid getting into debt.
- It helps you look for available financial aid, such as bursaries, loans and scholarships, so that you can afford your studies.
- It helps you find out which careers are in demand and which are oversupplied, so you choose a career with better job opportunities.
- It helps you consider other ways of studying, such as part-time or distance learning, if you cannot afford full-time study.
Two ways in which developing a study plan early in the year can help learners to feel confident during examinations are:
- A study plan helps learners organise their time so that all topics are covered step by step during the year. They do not have to cram large amounts of work at the last minute, which often causes panic. Because they have revised everything, they write the examination calmly and with confidence.
- By following a study plan, learners can track their progress and identify the topics they struggle with early. They can then spend extra time on difficult work or ask the teacher for help long before the examination. This gives them a sense of control over their learning, so they feel well prepared and confident.
