LEA-ANNE MOSES | Accessible digital reading and writing platforms can curb drop-out rate

While the department of basic education and the national government publicly celebrated last year’s 80% matric pass rate, little detail has been provided on all the statistics governing our country’s matriculation results in 2023.

According to the latest data from the National Senior Certificate, only 717,377 out of the 1.2 million South Africans who started grade 1 in 2012 could write their final matric exams last year and close to 20% of the 717,377 did not pass their matric papers.

Statistically speaking, of the 1.2 million children that started school in 2012, only 575,000 learners will enter the job market or study further with their matric certificate this year.

While many were celebrating the 80% pass rate, those of us in the educational sector looked a little closer at these figures, because we know firsthand that our country’s youth desperately need additional support when it comes to their academic capabilities.

Upon further inspection, one can see that only 47.92% of learners who started grade 1 in 2012 passed their matric last year. This offers little reason to celebrate; instead, it should offer a point of critical reflection towards motivating and encouraging a definitive response from both the public and private sectors to work together with civil society organisations to prevent this from happening again over the next 12 years.

While this may be a difficult conversation for a nation that desperately wants to see more wins amid rising poverty, crime and joblessness, we must view this as an uplifting opportunity to address the factors influencing this drop-out rate.

A study from Statista in 2022 revealed some reasons individuals aged 7-18 chose to drop out of school. Sadly, the main factor affecting this decision was poor academic performance.

While the pursuit of academia includes several different subjects, ranging from mathematics to the arts and sciences, basic and improved proficiency in literary capabilities will offer students an immediate pathway to improving their overall academic performance.

Improved reading, writing and literacy skills can help learners think critically across other subjects, empowering them with a higher level of understanding when new materials are presented to them.

Think of it this way: you can distribute the best history books that the world has to offer, sadly, they won’t have much of an impact if our youth cannot read for understanding or analyse textual pieces critically to formulate their own thoughts and opinions on world conflict.

Similarly, we cannot expect the youth of our country to pass their final-year exams, actively participate in our democracy, apply for meaningful jobs or comprehend documents functionally if we don’t improve and accelerate their literary capabilities.

Some neuroscience studies now indicate that reading fiction improves educational outcomes for youth who participate regularly. The adolescent stage (ages 10–19 years) offers a vital time for students to learn how to think critically and solve problems. While researchers once thought that early childhood was the only major period of brain plasticity, research now confirms that adolescence creates a second period of increased brain plasticity. The skills to analyse and respond to complex concepts can be formed during these years and reading plays a major role in this process.

Simply put, we must invest in accessible, zero-rated platforms that provide reading and writing opportunities to learners. We need a national response that promotes virtual book clubs as safe digital spaces where the youth can explore and improve their literary capabilities by sharing and publishing their writing and stories.

Researchers studying learners in the United States and China recently found a strong correlation between the act of reading and an improvement in Schoolastic Assessment Test scores, indicating that students could improve their academic performance by improving their literary abilities. In most countries, libraries can offer a range of reading materials geared toward this outcome.

This critical undertaking bears significant consequences in a world and global economy that are being driven by the latest advancements in AI technology. With a youth unemployment rate that currently rests at 63.9% for those between the ages of 15 and 24, it is clear that we need to offer our youth a pathway to success for the future, or they will soon be left behind.

The youth of our country need the national government, the private sector, and civil society organisations with a vested interest in educational outcomes to prioritise investment in accessible digital reading and writing platforms.

By deepening the youth’s access to virtual book clubs, we can foster a culture of continuous learning and skill development to empower learners in a manner that will significantly decrease the school drop-out rate in SA.

• Moses is executive director at Fundza Literacy Trust