SA’s reading crisis came into sharp focus in parliament on Tuesday when a member of the DA said budgetary constraints in implementing some of the programmes was not “an acceptable excuse”.
MP Baxolile Nodada was alluding to recent revelations by the annual 2030 Reading Panel convened by former deputy president Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka that only 18% of children in grade 4 can read for meaning.
“If pupils can’t read, they are doomed before they even begin,” he said.
Nodada’s comments were made during a presentation by the department of basic education on the analysis, implications and impact of President Cyril Ramaphosa’s state of the nation address.
“You can build all the infrastructure you want, you can train all the teachers you want, but if pupils can’t read and comprehend, all of those things you would have thrown money at become completely useless.”
He said 89% of schools had no libraries. “You can have reading champions, but if you don’t have facilities for them to champion that reading, it’s pointless to have those reading champions.”
According to Nodada, one of the mitigating strategies the department needed was to have a funded budget to promote reading for meaning.
“There must be a programme aligned to building libraries or collaborating with communities to provide a facility for reading for meaning.”
In his presentation, Stephen Taylor, head of research in the department, said there was now “near-universal access to schooling” as attendance by seven to 15-year-olds has been above 98% since 2009.
“The TIMSS [Trends in International Maths and Science Study] 2019 results showed a substantive improvement in the maths and science performance of grade 9 pupils.”
We need to provide skills and create economic opportunities for people with disabilities. It is, therefore, a matter of great concern that there are about half a million children of school-going age with disabilities who are not in school.
— Stephen Taylor, department of basic education head of research
While 10.5% of grade 9 pupils performed at or above a minimum proficiency level in maths in 2002, this increased to 41% in 2019.
Taylor said more candidates passes and bachelor passes were recorded in last year’s matric exams than ever before.
The five medium-term strategic framework outcomes for education for the period 2019-2024 include:
- improved school-readiness of children;
- 10-year-old pupils enrolled in publicly funded schools read for meaning;
- youths better prepared for further studies and the world of work beyond grade 9;
- youths leaving the schooling system more prepared to contribute towards a prosperous and equitable South Africa; and
- school physical infrastructure and environment that inspires pupils to learn and teachers to teach.
One of the issues mentioned in Taylor’s presentation, which was a state of the nation address commitment for 2019/20, was inclusive education.
“We need to provide skills and create economic opportunities for people with disabilities. It is, therefore, a matter of great concern that there are about half a million children of school-going age with disabilities who are not in school.”
He said the directorate of inclusive education has focused on implementing inclusive education across the system, including:
- mobilising out-of-school children/pupils of school-going age;
- improving admission processes via the district office; and
- strengthening teacher competencies and qualifications in specialised areas of inclusion, including 19,093 teachers trained in South African Sign Language.
Taylor said some of the challenges included insufficient spaces in special schools and the slow pace of placement of pupils from special care centres to schools.
“There are also backlogs in the assessment of the intellectual functioning of pupils for appropriate support and vacancies of inclusive education personnel at district level.”
MP Desiree van der Walt said while everyone gets excited about many of the things that are planned, the planning and achievement of set goals was not the same in all provinces.
“What can the minister, deputy minister or director-general do to make sure all nine provinces, especially the poorer provinces, have the same urgency?”
MP Walter Letsie said a lot of schools were still using pit latrine toilets.
He mentioned that some service providers liked “over-pricing” when dealing with government, such as those involved in building and renovating schools.
MP Gladys Adoons also referred to the issue of pit latrines, saying infrastructure was an ongoing concern.
She also asked if there were any plans and support in place to make sure those who don’t matriculate are brought back into the system to complete matric.
Basic education director-general Mathanzima Mweli said there were many challenges in the system that would be there for some time.
“As we celebrate the progress we are making, we must be woefully aware of the challenges that still lie ahead. The minister and deputy minister are the first to remind us all that there is no room for celebration and basking in the sun forever.”
He said the National Development Plan (NDP) was clear on what they had to achieve.
“We still have not even achieved half of what the NDP expects us to do, and we are the first ones to acknowledge that.”
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