Fewer primary school children can read for meaning today than before the Covid pandemic, and most children entering second grade do not know the alphabet.
But despite the literacy crisis, there is no national reading plan, no proper budget, no accurate reporting, and no progress in the implementation of important interventions.
There is no plan to address the declining literacy rate
The results of the 2023 Background Report for the Read 2030 Panel, written by leading education economist Nic Spaull, released Tuesday, show the country is falling behind in the basic unit of education: literacy.
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The Readers 2030 Panel is a group of leaders and researchers convened by former Vice President Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka to ensure that all children in South Africa aged ten and above can read meaningfully by 2030.
The report found that “no amount of continuous improvement of the education system across the country will produce these results”.
Literacy crisis: 82% of fourth graders cannot read for meaning
Extrapolating from Western Cape data, the report estimates that the share of 4th graders who cannot read for meaning has increased to at least 82%, from 78% recorded in 2016.
The report found that around 60% of children had not learned most of the letters of the alphabet by the end of first grade, citing data from the Department of Basic Education (DBE) Early Grade Reading Learning (EGRS), which has followed children from over 200 schools for more than seven year in the North West province.
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At the end of 2nd grade, more than 30% still do not know all the letters of the alphabet. The report found that these children were “constantly behind and in ‘chase’ mode, although they never caught up”.
What is being done to ensure that literacy is prioritized? Frighteningly little, said the report.
National reading program
The most visible national reading program is the Presidential Youth Employment Initiative (PYEI) Educator Assistant Program. By 2023, nearly 30,000 Educational Assistants (EAs) will be “Reading Champions” focused on improving reading for elementary students.
The report notes this with skepticism, as the entry requirements are low – 30% in matric and fluency in the school’s home language – and Reading Champions will not have face-to-face training or be submitted to a selection process.
Nationally, the DBE does not give readings to give special attention to the crisis. Despite claims to the contrary from the DBE, the report found that there is no National Reading Plan, and the most recent “National Reading Strategy” was published in 2008.
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In the 2022 Education Budget Vote, the budget allocated specifically to reading is R11 million for Early Grade Reading Assessment. This targets 18 schools. DBE can only reach nine schools.
Some hopeful signs
There are some sparks of hope in two provinces, Western Cape and Gauteng.
In the Western Cape, the provincial government selected Funda Wande, an education NGO, as a partner to launch a province-wide Reading for Meaning program in all Afrikaans and isiXhosa schools in the province. Over the next three years, the Western Cape Department of Education will fund the program with R111 million.
In Gauteng, the provincial Department of Education is working with WordWorks, as well as an education NGO, to implement the grade R program in all schools. The three-year budget of R107 million is 80% funded by a consortium of donors, with the remaining 20% from the provincial budget.
While the Eastern Cape Department of Education recently launched its 2022 – 2030 Reading Strategy & Campaign, it has yet to allocate a budget for the programme.
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The report estimates that South Africa will take until 2026 to return to the 2016 level of improvement, without immediate intervention.
The report identifies two types of interventions
The report identifies two types of interventions that have shown excellent results in smaller trials. One is to use teacher trainers who visit teachers in the classroom.
Others use trained and well-resourced Teaching Assistants to teach reading. Teaching Assistants in the PYEI program are not specially trained or resourced.
But interventions are rare. Almost no progress has been made to implement the Panel’s four recommendations since last year: to assess reading in every school in the country every year; to allocate new national budgets for reading programs or reading resources (only the Western Cape has done so); to provide all Foundation Phase classes with a minimum standard set of reading resources (only completed in the Western Cape and Gauteng); and audit teacher education programs before graduates enter the workplace.
“The problem is not about the lack of an evidence base on how to improve reading outcomes, but the political economy issue of why adequate funding for reading interventions has not been forthcoming,” the report said.
This article originally appeared on GroundUp and is republished with permission.
Read the original article here.