Reading crisis puts South Africa’s future in jeopardy – Amnesty International

Following the release of the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (Pirls) 2021 assessment, Amnesty International expressed serious concerns about South Africa’s reading crisis and its education system.

Shenilla Mohamed, executive director of Amnesty International in South Africa, said if this report “is not a wake-up call, we don’t know what is”.

South Africa’s reading crisis

Mohamed said it was “shocking” that more than 80% of Grade 4 learners cannot read for comprehension.

She said this grim statistic exposes a failure on government’s part to respect, protect, and fulfil the constitutional right to basic education.

She also called out the disparities in South Africa’s education system and the potential adverse effects on the country’s youth.

Covid-19 not an excuse

Mohamed acknowledges the deep impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic on education but insists it doesn’t excuse the DBE from addressing the problem.

South Africa’s reading crisis predates the pandemic and has only been worsened by it.

Mohamed thus calls for a “time-bound, measurable and transparent plan” to resolve the crisis.

READ: Less than 20% of SA’s grade 4 pupils can read for meaning, minister blames Covid

Combatting unemployment

Linking education and employment, Mohamed also cites the latest unemployment figures, which show that over a third of 15 to 24-year-olds in South Africa are not employed.

She points out that a higher education level correlates with lower youth unemployment chances.

To enable young people to contribute to the nation’s future, Mohamed insists on quality basic education for all children, regardless of their background.

Mohamed concludes: “Young people should no longer bear the brunt for the government’s failures”.

READ: Youth left behind: Reality of SA’s unemployment crisis in 2023

2020: SA failing its youth

Amnesty International South Africa has released two reports over 2020 and 2021, discussing the state of basic education in the country, both highlighting stark inequalities in the education system.

In 2020, a report titled Broken and Unequal: The State of Education in South Africa said government was “failing too many of it’s young people when it comes to eduction”

Even though significant progress had been made since the end of apartheid, this progress “has not always translated into a quality education for all pupils”.

“The result is many schools with crumbling infrastructure, overcrowded classrooms and poor educational outcomes.”

2021: No facilities, no resources

Then in 2021, Amnesty International released a report titled Failing to Learn the Lessons? The Impact of Covid-19 on a broken and unequal education system.

It acknowledged the impact of Covid-19 on the education sector, and highlighted several other issues, such as 19% of the 23 471 public schools in SA only having illegal pit latrines for sanitation. In fact, more than 66 000 pupils in Limpopo use pit toilets.

Meanwhile, 37 schools had no sanitation facilities at all, while 77% had no library and 72% had no internet access. 239 schools didn’t have electricity.

Amnesty International said the “historic lack of investment is exacerbating inequalities during the pandemic and risking the loss of opportunity for an entire generation”.

The way forward

It recommended government address the infrastructure failings in schools, and prioritise the institutions which fall below government’s own standards as outlined in the Minimum Norms and Standard policy.

Moreover, government “needs to put human rights at the heart of its policies in order to ensure all children regardless of their status or circumstances can benefit from a decent education”.

“Now is the time to invest in [SA’s] young people and ensure they all can enjoy the right to quality education and contribute to a better future society.”

Understanding Pirls

Pirls is an international research project and assessment aiming to evaluate reading achievement at the fourth-grade level and analyse school and teacher practices related to instruction.

Administered every five years, 2021 marked the fourth cycle of South Africa’s involvement in the Pirls study.

The assessment was conducted across the country’s 11 official languages for Grade 4 learners and in English and Afrikaans for Grade 6 learners.