Indigenous languages vital to improving poor literacy levels: Gwarube

To stem poor literacy levels among school-going children, mother-tongue education must be implemented. This is the sentiment shared by Basic Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube.

Her comments come as a 2021 Progress in International Reading Literacy Study found that 81% of grade 4 learners in South Africa struggle to read with comprehension at age 10.

Gwarube says there needs to be redress in the system as the Constitution guarantees the right to education in the mother tongue, yet, that right has not been realised for millions of South Africans.

Gwarube was speaking at the Heritage Day commemorations in Johannesburg. The celebrations coincide with Literacy Month.

While there are 12 official languages in the country, only a few, mostly English and Afrikaans are utilised as languages of instruction.

This puts many learners, whose mother tongue is indigenous at a disadvantage.

Gwarube says more work needs to be done to ensure that learners can be taught in their mother tongue.

“If children are able to learn in their mother tongue or at least one of the languages they learn in their mother tongue for several years into their education, their cognitive ability improves significantly. That is why data shows us that speakers of English and Afrikaans fully benefit from being able to speak and study in their mother tongue beyond grade 3 and to a vast majority, millions of South Africans who speak Indigenous African language are not able to access that.”

She says academic excellence will remain unattainable for many if the disparities persist.

“If we don’t get that right, we run the risk of locking millions of children out of key economic opportunities for the future. If we do not get the work of this department correct, then there are thirteen and a half million learners  who run the risk of letting done and blocking them out of economic opportunities or being sort of the future of the economy.”

Integrating indigenous languages

Deputy chairperson of the Sci Bono Discovery Centre Dr Nandipha Madiba, on the other hand, maintains that integrating indigenous languages into stream subjects is essential, especially with the advancement of technology.

“Teaching subjects in stream languages makes education more accessible and relatable. You can relate because you can understand and it also fosters a deeper understanding and appreciation of their culture. The second reason is inclusivity which I know we understand, the same access to all the rights we have in terms of our constitution.”

Meanwhile, some sectors of society have raised concerns about the erosion of indigenous languages.

Language body, the Pan South African Language Board (PanSALB), says it’s significant to defend the linguistic heritage of each community.

The organisation’s CEO Lance Schultz adds: “The education sector plays a pivotal role in multilingual contexts such as SA where many teachers or educators and students are not first-language English speakers. Despite the prevalence use of trans language by teachers, the medium of instruction predominantly remains English.”

Reading Culture | Mother tongue-based bilingual programme: Siviwe Gwarube