Mail & Guardian
Mail & Guardian
between the lines serieslatest news & developments
Read right: Archie Mbolekwa Primary School teacher, Hlakanipha Archie Mbolekwa Primary School teacher, Hlakanipha Gxekwa, received support from Funda Wande to implement daily phonics lessons, guided reading, and writing routines.
BETWEEN THE LINES SERIES

Mother-tongue education is failing

The numbers tell a politically uncomfortable truth. A survey of all Grade 4 children in Makhanda’s no-fee public schools this year found that 51% of isiXhosa learners taught in…

  • Jane Viedge
  • Rod Amner
7 min read
Success story: Children in Sobral participate in reading time. Sobral has undergone a transformation from one of the poorest places in Northeast Brazil to a municipality that regularly hosts visits to schools regarded as among the best in Brazil. Photo: Centre for Reinventing Public Education
BETWEEN THE LINES SERIES

The politics of literacy

In November 2025, the R50 million Funda Uphumelele National Survey (FUNS) delivered the first comprehensive measurement of early-grade reading in all official languages. The…

  • Rod Amner
  • Lucas Nowick
8 min read
Equipped: A woman looks around in the Michaelis Art Library within the Johannesburg City Library on 9 August 2025. Photo: OUR CITY NEWS/James Oatway
AFROFUTURISM

How funding apartheid fails young library users

Lack of funds prevent provinces from carrying out their mandate to manage public library services

  • Rod Amner
  • Gcina Ntsaluba
8 min read