The Minister was briefing the media on Sunday following the release last month of the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study in which South African learners came last in a reading ability study which included 50 countries.
“The magnitude of our decline relating to the pandemic does not come as a surprise. South Africa was amongst the countries most actively gauging impacts on learning outcomes during the pandemic and the results we see now in PIRLS are in line with the earlier findings that we did say as the department,” she said.
“More than anything, for us what is important about PIRLS and the reading is that we have to recognise that learning does not start at Grade R. It starts at zero. There are steps that the department can take but it is also what parents can do. That is why we have been going on roadshows to make sure that all of us as villagers can identify our role in ensuring that our children are ready for school and when they are in school they can sustain whatever is being taught.