Numerous Helderberg schools are among hundreds of beneficiaries across the country to benefit from the 2024 AVBOB Road To Literacy trolley library campaign, which celebrates its third year of transforming the lives of primary school children.
Raithby, Sir Lowry’s Pass, Christmas Tinto and Solomon Qatyana primary schools were announced as four of 500 beneficiaries of the campaign which is a collaborative initiative between AVBOB and Oxford University Press Southern Africa (OUPSA) and not only makes books accessible, but also provides children with books in their mother tongue languages. The announcement was made by AVBOB CEO Carl van der Riet and OUPSA managing director Karen Simpson at an event held in Centurion on Thursday 13 June. Van der Riet said the more than 7 000 nominations received this year posed a challenge for adjudicators as choosing outstanding motivations from the “best” could not have been an easy task.
The 2024 national AVBOB Road to Literacy campaign had a mother tongue focus and provided books in all eleven written official languages. This public-nomination initiative aims to make reading and numeracy books accessible to primary schoolchildren, especially those from underserved schools. Research indicates that children who learn to read in their mother tongue are more likely to stay and succeed in school (Kosonen, 2005).
Each trolley library consists of 500 books tailored to the CAPS curriculum, with an estimated value of R65 000. Each AVBOB Road to Literacy trolley library has a value of R50 000, bringing the total investment value for the 2024 initiative to R32,5 million. In 2024, 500 trolley libraries will be donated to deserving primary schools and educational non-profit organisations (NPOs). This marks a substantial increase from the 260 trolley libraries donated in 2023 and the 180 trolleys donated in 2022.
The collaboration between AVBOB and OUPSA underscores the support to the Department of Education by providing CAPS-aligned resources to assist learners with improved reading proficiency and understanding. Since South Africa was ranked last out of the 57 countries in the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study in 2021, it is such partnerships that make a difference in society. The study tested the reading ability of 400 000 students globally and showed that 81% of South African children could not read for comprehension in any of the country’s 11 official written languages. The aim is to make such initiatives available to positively impact children by making reading accessible and popular.
In his address, Van der Riet said: “The skills of literacy and numeracy are not only fundamental human rights but also means for the pursuit of other human rights. They are the foundation for achieving education and the broader goal of reducing poverty.”
He explained that AVBOB was established to help people through challenging times and has never veered from that original purpose. “We still exist for the people, and our mutual status is a cornerstone of who we are,” he added.
Van der Riet further stated that AVBOB is owned by its members as it is a mutual society, and it exists solely to serve its members’ interests and that of the wider community. “Our Environmental, Social, and Governance strategy underscores this commitment, guiding us to make decisions that are not only profitable but also sustainable and socially responsible,” he said.
Guest speaker Gugulethu Ndebele, Executive Director of Oprah Winfrey Academy for Girls (OWLAG), provided valuable insight into the importance of mother tongue reading. She praised AVBOB’s long-standing and unwavering commitment to education and emphasised that the trolley libraries are only effective if they are integrated into other teaching activities and strategies in order achieve a holistic education outcome.
Simpson said: “Our mission at Oxford University Press is to transform lives through learning. We believe that partnerships with like-minded organisations, such as AVBOB, are essential in realising our vision to positively impact the lives of millions of learners anytime, anywhere. Our collaboration with AVBOB has strengthened over the last three years, and we are exceptionally proud of our involvement in the 2024 Road to Literacy campaign, which supports so many deserving schools where access to the right literacy resources can make the biggest difference to learning outcomes.”
