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Study: 81% of 10-Year-Old South Africans Battle to Read

  • #Schools
  • #Education
  • #Testing
  • #COVID-19
  • #South Africa
story
MAY 2023
Image copyright: Getty Images [via BBC]
story last updated MAY 2023

The Spin

Narrative A

The negative and dire consequences of the pandemic erased a decade of progress in reading outcomes and put brakes on the government's program to improve primary education. In addition, unprecedented disruptions resulted in severe loss of teaching time for children at a crucial stage of their developmental journey.

Unicef

Narrative B

It's unfair to blame COVID, as multiple factors — including a lack of textbooks and libraries, inadequate infrastructure, and significant inequality between black and white students — are responsible for the longstanding education crisis in South Africa. The country has also been marked by the poor education imposed on the majority black population, who are partly illiterate and find it challenging to help their children learn to read.

TheAfrica

Metaculus Prediction


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