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Imagine mentioning Nelson Mandela to a 12th-grade learner and discovering they had never heard of him. You would be surprised. Sometimes while working with Uwezo, we asked children to name parts of a tree. We found out 1 in 10 children in Classes 6-8 could not name parts of a tree (stem, roots, leaves) in their language of choice.
All this is knowledge as simple as being aware of COVID-19. Yet, it is disheartening when children are ignorant of such matters of history and mother nature. The International Day of the African Child reminds us to refocus our energies to ensure that children can read, write, solve simple arithmetic problems and know other basic things in life.
The International Day of the African Child honours the children who were brutally murdered in the Soweto Uprising on June 16, 1976, for demanding quality education. Sadly, forty-five years since the brutal slaying, some African children cannot read a grade two level story. Yet, it is the basic things that matter most in life.
This year’s theme, “30 years after the adoption of the Charter: accelerate the implementation of Agenda 2040 for an Africa fit for children,” calls for the need to rethink our education, more so on the basic literacy and numeracy. Achieving agenda 2040 that aspires to an Africa where every child benefits fully from quality education calls for a shift towards the basics.
The UNESCO Institute for Statistics estimates that 674 million children and adolescents are not achieving minimum proficiency levels in reading and mathematics. The PAL Network’s International Common Assessment of Numeracy report shows that even in classes 7-8, many children are still unable to do numeracy tasks expected in class 2 or 3. This tasks include number knowledge, geometry, measurement and data display. The UNESCO and PAL Network reports on low learning outcomes call for our urgent attention.
The COVID-19 pandemic is reminding us of the importance of basics such as hand washing as the foundation of good health. Similarly, basic literacy and numeracy skills are the foundations of subsequent learning, both in school and beyond. In the last 15 years, PAL Network citizen-led assessments have demonstrated that children who fail to acquire basic skills in the early grades fall further behind.
As we celebrate the International Day of the African Child, I believe the opportunity is ripe for Africa to bolster quality learning by refocusing on children’s basic literacy and numeracy. The focus is critical now more than ever, as we shift our energies to building better and ensuring learning continuity for all after the Covid-19 pandemic. The focus must be our priority now and in the next few years. That way, every child in Africa would be able to read and do basic maths by grade 3.
Refocusing on the basics also calls for our commitment to carry out an annual review to ascertain if we are making progress or not. The imperative is to regularly conduct citizen-led assessments such as Uwezo and ASER to track learning progress. It is also desirable to use assessments such as the International Common Assessment of Numeracy of PAL Network that offers global comparability. ICAN aligns with sustainable development goals.
I urge governments, policymakers, funders and civil society organisations to prioritise children’s basic literacy and numeracy. That way, each African child can proudly say ‘I can read’ or ‘I can do maths.’ Similarly, African children will also know and appreciate their history and mother nature. Let us all align ourselves around this goal.
