Durban North organisation enters the gateway of reading
The foundation completed the Gateway into Reading course in order to promote literacy.
TO commemorate World Literacy Day on September 8, and to do its bit in creating a more literate nation, The Domino Foundation’s Life Skills and Skills Development recently attended the Gateway into Reading (GiR) course in Kloof.
Also read: Call to action for uMhlanga beach clean-up
“When young people from disadvantaged backgrounds can read fluently and are able to understand what they are reading, a whole world opens up to them and they are able to dream of a future far wider than their experience,” said Life Skills leader Thobile Msani.
“They begin to see they have hope of breaking away from their narrow circumstances and become game-changers.”
Her team of youth workers will be using the GiR programme with Grade Four students at two Amaoti primary schools.
Thobile’s colleague, Nobuhle Ndlovu, heads up the Skills Development Programme which deals with students at the upper end of secondary school and transitioning into tertiary education.
“We have been concerned with how often high school students, even those considering tertiary education, have a shaky grasp of the basics of language. There are important elements of the GiR we can use to put them in a stronger position with their reading for understanding well before those vital matric exams.”
Monica Haines, administrator at the Kloof-based Neema Foundation, said it saw learners struggling with reading, and so the course was developed.
“The Gateway into Reading’ (GiR) programme teaches foundational reading, developing basic skills in word recognition and deciphering,” she said.
The foundation recently ran a training course to equip educationalists to teach phonics (sounds that build words) so they, in turn, can help their students build a stronger basic understanding of language and long-term communication skills. Monica added that the programme has been highly effective and is being used in at least 29 schools and that thousands of learners have benefitted.
Monica can be contacted at neemaadmin@neemafoundation.co.za or 074 121 8728 if you would like to use Gateway into Reading in your community, and Thobile and Nobuhle can be contacted at hello@domino.org.za or 031 110 0730.
For more from Northglen News, follow us on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. You can also check out our videos on our YouTube channel or follow us on TikTok.
