A recent reading panel background report, released in February, found that 82% of children in grade four cannot read for meaning, an increase from 78% recorded in 2016.
The South African Reading Panel, consisting of 18 panellists, released a report on 7 February on the worrying number of school-going children, specifically those in grade four, who cannot read properly due to little to no reading plan from the department of basic education (DBE).
According to the report, the DBE is not giving the illiteracy crises in South Africa due attention and there is no reading plan published or followed after the most recent one made public in 2008.
Even the 2008 plan has not been adhered to.
GroundUp reported that in the 2022 education budget of the department, the allocated budget for a reading plan was R11 million which aimed to target 18 schools, but only managed to reach nine.
The report also found that 60% of children have not learned most of the letters of the alphabet by the end of grade one, citing data from the DBE and the early grade reading study (EGRS), which has followed children from over 200 schools for more than seven years in the North West province.
According to Zelda Barends, a senior lecturer at Stellenbosch University’s education department, it is important for early child development to practice language use and ensure that it remains up to standard for the child’s age.
Barends added that family and friends should not underestimate the value of reading and telling stories to children as it contributes to their verbal language skills.
Additionally, schools should have a literacy vision, and understand what it entails to learn to read.
“Reading is a technical skill that depends on many components such as the child’s ability to process and learn and manipulate sounds.
“Another important aspect that schools should adopt is to be able to read with understanding, which is practiced by adopting various reading comprehension strategies.”
According to Barends, schools should also not wait for guidance or funding from the provincial education department, but rather empower themselves, and be “agents of change”.
There are many factors playing into child illiteracy, but one prominent factor is that they are not taught in their home language which has an impact on their ability to process knowledge and skills, Barends explained.
Further advice Barends gave to children who struggle with reading material in their specific grade, is to encourage children to decipher words.
“This is done by assisting them to identify sounds and how to break words into its sound units which will assist them in deciphering words.”
Another tool is also to assist children to read aloud and have a conversation about what was read to improve reading comprehension.
The Conversation reported that adults can adopt the following policies to improve their children’s literacy from a young age:
. Read anything that you are reading out load whether it is to a new born or toddler, because children become attuned to the sound of your voice and the tones of the language you speak as their hearing develops.
. Encourage dialogue at supper by asking, for example, “what did you and your doll do today? or “What did you learn at school?” This will encourage children to speak and develop a language framework.
. Include children in tasks involving reading. For example, when ordering take-away’s, writing cards or texts, or reading instructions in a cookbook, encourage them to part take in these activities and answer questions they are uncertain about which will improve their literacy.
. Encourage children to read their own night time stories, or books during the day with the assistance of an adult to explain any unknown words.
Take children to book stores or libraries to buy or take out their own books which will not only improve their love for reading, but also their literary skills.
