Teachers and principals cannot fix the reading crisis on their own

It has been widely reported that SA’s grade 4 pupils cannot read with understanding in their home language and the first additional language. This is a literacy crisis that needs South Africans to work together.

One cannot ignore the fact that some of the assessed pupils’ home languages are African languages (indigenous languages). Are these pupils speaking their home language? Are they able to write in their home language?

In the results, are we also including pupils who are in their year of transitioning from learning through their mother tongue to learning through a first additional language?

This takes us back to the previous grades. How were these pupils prepared for reading with understanding in the foundation phase? Who was preparing them?

The educational imbalances of the past have not been redressed, and equal educational opportunities are not provided for all sections of the population. This becomes a reality specifically when it comes to language issues in education.

Competition is tight, schools are rushing to prepare pupils to read and speak English from early grades at the expense of suppressing their home languages, especially African languages.

As a result, the “best schools” are those with pupils who can speak and read in English from the foundation phase. This is how “quality education” seems to be measured.

We cannot address the literacy crisis without addressing language inequalities in education. This is a major factor that has produced poor reading results.

Literacy doesn’t begin in grade 1. It begins much earlier — with talking, singing, storytelling and playing with sounds from birth.

This implies that speaking, reading and writing need all stakeholders to play their part. Parents, guardians and caregivers have an important role in developing children’s reading skills.

However, this can be a challenge if in the child’s immediate environment there is no stimulation. Children must learn to speak their mother tongue at home.

The responsibility to teach literacy must not be placed on educators alone.

Children learn the language at home; they go to Early Childhood Development (ECD) centres to be supported in the learning process that must happen at home.

This implies that homes have a key role in laying a foundation for reading with understanding.

If ECD educators are not capacitated with skills to sharpen the skills learnt at home, we will continue to have a challenge.

If children are struggling at home, ECD is there to fill the gap, to support the child so he/she is “not left behind”.

That means if home is dysfunctional, we must have functional ECD.

If these two immediate environments are not playing their part effectively, the literacy crisis will always haunt us.

Teachers’ pedagogical content knowledge is pivotal in teaching a subject.

Not all teachers love teaching languages. Some do so because they are grade/class teachers in the foundation phase where they are expected to teach all subjects.

Some have done language modules in their pre-service training, but that does not necessarily mean they can confidently teach languages.

Some teachers may excel in some language skills and lack in others.

One teacher might be good at teaching writing and handwriting but not good at teaching components of reading (phonics, phonemic awareness, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension).

One teacher might be biased towards a subject because they are move confident in teaching it.

It is important to think about the people who teach reading with understanding. That is why we must invest in teacher training and ongoing professional development.

This includes preparing pre-service teachers in our universities, as well as supporting in-service teachers through workshops, mentorship and providing access to quality teaching materials.

Reading with understanding cannot be taught only when teaching language subjects.

The intricate web of factors contributing to the grade 4 literacy crisis necessitates a comprehensive and multifaceted approach, integrating perspectives from pedagogy and systemic reform.

The University of Fort Hare, through the Department of Early Childhood Care Education and the Department of Languages and Literacy Education, is striving to develop excellence in teaching foundation phases and language.

The Department of Early Childhood Care and Education is committed to providing a solid foundation for educators who will shape the early learning experiences of young children.

Its programmes focus on the development of essential skills in child-centred teaching, caregiving and the understanding of early childhood development theories.

The Department of Languages and Literacy Education is dedicated to fostering a deep understanding of language acquisition, literacy development and the importance of communication in education.

Its programmes focus on equipping future educators with the skills needed to teach diverse language pupils and to promote literacy in both mother tongue (specifically, African languages) and second languages.

The literacy crisis has been identified. SA in known for having pupils who cannot read with understanding.

It is good that some work has been done. The fact that they can read is a foundation upon which we can build.

Fixing this crisis isn’t just the responsibility of teachers and principals. It is a collective task that involves the government, universities, NGOs, families and the private sector.

The government must ensure policies are aligned with literacy goals and that funding supports early learning.

Nonprofit organisations can help bridge gaps in communities through reading programmes and literacy campaigns.

Parents and caregivers, even those who are not literate, can play a powerful role just by talking to their children, telling stories and showing an interest in books.

Universities have a dual responsibility: preparing the next generation of teachers and generating research that informs best practice in the classroom.

We must also partner with schools and communities to make literacy everyone’s business.

We have a crisis to fix; let us fix it together.

Dr Sonti Mokobane (interim head of Department of Early Childhood Care Education, and Dr Sive Makeleni (interim head of Department of Languages and Literacy Education) University of Fort Hare Faculty of Education