Explain TWO ways in which a lack of basic services, like electricity, can negatively impact on learners' performance.
About this question
Question 2.3 of Life Orientation Grade 10, Provincial Examination (North West DoE, November 2025). It tests the Term 2 ATP topic Social and Environmental Responsibility.
- TermTerm 2
- ATP topicSocial and Environmental Responsibility
- PaperNW November 2025
- Marks4 marks: 2 points, 2 marks each
Poverty 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]
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.
Other points that earn marks
- Poor lighting makes it difficult to concentrate while studying.
- Learning in an uncomfortable environment, for example without heating, reduces learners' interest and enthusiasm.
More Questions On Social and Environmental Responsibility
Three causes of crime committed by learners are:
- Peer pressure linked to gangsterism.
- A lack of life skills.
- Poverty and the need for quick money.
Three reasons why there is more food insecurity in some parts of the world than in others are:
- Poverty means that many people cannot afford to buy enough healthy food.
- Natural disasters such as floods, droughts and unsuitable weather destroy food crops.
- War and conflict stop farming and prevent food from reaching people.
Substance abuse (drug abuse).
Substance abuse is the harmful use of drugs, medication or alcohol, which can lead to addiction and damage your health and relationships.
D: Ecological disasters
Poverty, HIV and Aids and violence are social issues because they come from the way people live together in communities. Ecological disasters such as floods and droughts are environmental issues. (The printed memo gives B, but HIV and Aids is one of the main social issues in the textbook.)
Five harmful effects of poverty that people in these countries could suffer from are:
- Poor health and diseases, because they cannot afford medical care.
- Malnutrition and hunger, because there is not enough food.
- A lack of basic resources and services such as clean water, electricity and sanitation.
- A lack of education, because families cannot afford school costs.
- No access to a healthy and safe environment, for example living in overcrowded informal settlements.
Two harmful effects that crime has on personal health are:
- Victims of crime may be physically injured, for example through assault or rape, and can suffer permanent disability, infections such as HIV or even death.
- Crime causes emotional and mental harm, such as fear, stress, anxiety and post-traumatic stress, because victims no longer feel safe in their homes or communities.