South Africa's children deserve no less than to be able to read for meaning

In South Africa, 2.7-million adults over the age of 20 are illiterate.

The first five years of life inform many aspects of adulthood, including learning to read and write. During this time, 90% of brain development takes place. The brain forms more than one-million neural connections each second, a phase of development that is never repeated. It is here that the foundational building blocks for future learning, health and behaviour are laid. But for many South Africans, their first five years are a lost opportunity from which they never recover.

On September 8 the world celebrates International Literacy Day, the theme of which is “Promoting literacy for a world in transition: Building the foundation for sustainable and peaceful societies”. Sadly, there's not much to celebrate in this country as our children’s ability to read for meaning is among the worst in the world.

According to the global Progress in International Reading and Literacy Study (Pirls), fewer than one in five (19%) grade 4 children could read for meaning in any language in 2021. And the situation is deteriorating. South Africa's Pirls score dropped from 320 points in 2016 to 288 in 2021. By comparison, the average score is 500 points. We have effectively lost a decade of progress in reading for meaning.

There are numerous reasons for this: the lack of a reading culture in many households, poorly resourced schools and a lack of emphasis on reading during the critical early childhood development (ECD) phase. Literacy is probably one of the most important foundations in our education system. Without it, children cannot progress through their education journey, while adults cannot access and participate in economic activities.

To help address this gap, Anglo American and the department of basic education launched a programme five years ago in Limpopo, the Northern Cape and Mpumalanga. From the start, one of its focus areas was early childhood learning, with a target of ensuring 90% of preschool pupils meet the minimum requirements for school readiness by the time they are five. 

To achieve this, the programme works to improve reading and literacy in our schools and early childhood development (ECD) centres through different initiatives aimed at stimulating interest in reading among pupils and cultivate a culture of reading in schools.

The programme includes creating organised reading corners in educational facilities, teachers working with project coaches to get pupils interested in reading and training sessions on the science of reading, in which teachers implement group-guided reading and phonics lessons. So far, 562 grade 1 to 7 teachers from 75 phase 1 schools have received coaching and training to support more than 38,500 grade 1 to 7 pupils in literacy.

Looking at the early childhood development element of the programme, a baseline study was conducted in 2021 to assess the emergent literacy and language rate of participating ECD centres. It found that only 45% of children were on track in terms of school-readiness when it came to knowledge, skills and attitudes a child develops for reading and writing during the early childhood period. After various interventions, another assessment was conducted at the end of 2022. It found school-readiness levels had increased to 64%, showing the programme’s interventions help to close the literacy gap, particularly at ECD phase, where it is most pertinent.

Last year Anglo American launched Phase 2 of the programme to reimagine education to further improve pupil outcomes in 80 schools and the same number of ECD centres in Limpopo, the Northern Cape and North West provinces.

Among key lessons from Phase 1 was that you can’t fix education in a bubble. You must address socioeconomic issues that aren’t directly education focused, but clearly have an impact on a school’s ability to provide quality education. This includes the insights that effective learning cannot take place in environments which are not conducive for teaching and learning. This includes the provision of water and toilets, upgrading and repairing classrooms, improving pupils' safety and creating cognitive play areas at ECD centres.

Ultimately, the programme’s objective is to ensure children in host communities who attend lower quintile schools do not get left behind in the education system and have tools to participate in the fourth industrial revolution (4IR).

For younger children, it can be as simple as providing a jungle gym, a few books and trained teachers who can stimulate their rapidly growing brains and bodies. We may have to wait a few years to see the full effects of these interventions, but there’s no doubt the results will be worth it. Our children deserve no less.