The National Literacy Initiative aims to teach 3,3-million people to read
JOHN Samuel has been picked by Minister of Education Kader Asmal to be the commander-in-chief in the fight against illiteracy. Last year Asmal declared his intention to ”break the back of illiteracy” in the next five years.
The education budget has made funds available for the setting up of the National Literacy Initiative, headed by Samuel. Regarded by many as the best candidate for minister of edcation in 1994, Samuel headed the African National Congress’s (ANC) education wing prior to the first democratic elections and was instrumental in developing a national education policy. ”We identified literacy as a target area then and now we must deliver,” he says. At the Dakar conference on literacy last year, 2015 was set as the date by which countries, particularly those in the developing world, would have decreased their illiterate populations by 50%. ”We are working towards this goal as part of a long-term vision,” says Samuel, ”but we have a short-term five-year plan to begin with.”
Critical steps have already been taken to set up the mechanism of delivery for the campaign. In the first stage of the programme the trainers will be trained and in the second stage the programme itself will be delivered. A six-week intensive training course is being developed for trainers. It is hoped that resources will be mobilised at a local level and that volunteers from community and church organisations will come forward to be trained.
”We are extending an open invitation to all who wish to participate,” says Samuel, ”We need to mobilise the resources of the country so that this is a social movement.” Samuel, who has spent time working in education in Zambia, Ghana and England, says that although we can draw on the experience of others, we need to respond to the particular situation in South Africa if the initiative is to be more than a technical exercise. ”It’s just a Mickey Mouse project if it doesn’t reach a vast number of people,” says Samuel.
With the aim of reaching the largest number of people possible, SABC radio and television have been brought in to help in the delivery of the programme. ”Radio is a powerful tool for reaching people at the local level,” says Samuel. The initiative aims to teach basic language and mathematics skills to 3,3-million people, particularly women in rural areas. Initial instruction will be in mother tongue and will start at the most basic level.
In response to the claim that such literacy campaigns do not have long-lasting results, Samuel says, ”Many programmes fail to consider post-literacy. We need to cater to people once literacy is achieved. We need to strengthen Adult Basic Education and Training through regional centres and make books and reading materials more accessible. And we need to improve access to libraries.” The programme will be linked to training in business skills, primary health care, community development and information technology.
Samuel admits that the task is intimidating, but is excited at the prospect of finding a uniquely South African solution to the problem of illiteracy.
— The Teacher/Mail & Guardian, June 12, 2000.
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