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Zimbabwean Education Minister Unconvinced By 92 Percent Literacy Rate Claim

by Bontle on 06 Oct 2010   |   

Education, Sport, Arts and Culture minister David Coltart says Zimbabweans must not mislead themselves into believing that the country has the highest literacy levels in Africa. In the recent United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) study, Zimbabwe overtook Tunisia as the country with the highest literacy rate on the continent at 92%.

Colltart said the UNDP relied on figures showing attendance at school for the first four years of formal education as indicators of literacy rates but the Grade VII results will be a more accurate indicator for Zimbabwe.

He gave an example of a recent survey among Grade V pupils in Manicaland which showed that there were “alarmingly low” rates of literacy.

Coltart said most of the pupils in the survey did not have Grade V literacy levels but had Grade I and II levels, a scenario he said most likely applied to all provinces in this country.

“Our education system is in a crisis and we need to do a lot of work to restore the quality of education for our children's sake,” he said.

• Read the complete article

Liberia Sees First Batch of Female High School Graduates for 2010

by Bontle on 13 Sep 2010   |   

In a nation with Africa’s only female president, Liberian girls are outpaced by boys in educational enrolment, retention and completion rates from the earliest grades through university. Nationally, for every 10 boys in primary school there are nine girls; for every 10 boys in high school, there are fewer than seven girls, and in some rural high schools like Bopolu, there are none at all. Only 18 percent of girls who make it to high school graduate, compared with 25 percent of boys.

When students return to the classroom at Bopolu Central High School this year, there will be something not seen at the school since it reopened after Liberia’s long civil war: senior-class women.

Marking a milestone for a school struggling with a gender gap, eight girls are expected among Bopolu’s 24 seniors. While Bopolu’s primary grades are more gender-balanced, school attendance falls sharply after the mandatory first six years of instruction, most drastically among young women.

“I’m telling you that a single female has not graduated from this school,” said John V. Lombeh, the vice principal for instruction. “The good thing is that we are proud to announce to you that we will be having our first batch of females graduating from secondary school this new academic year.”

• Read the complete article at AllAfrica

Shine Centre Launches Primary School Reading Project in Cape Town

by Bontle on 06 Sep 2010   |   

The Shine Centre began its reading project when it realised that Grade 2 and Grade 3 pupils who travel daily from the townships to Cape Town’s inner city schools may not be getting enough individual reading time.

To help fix this problem, the centre has signed up 250 “dedicated, empathetic, resourceful and passionate” volunteers from all walks of life who spend two hours a week with almost 270 pupils, practising reading.

The centre’s communications manager Kerry White says they also operate book clubs and swap shops, allowing pupils to take books home to read with their parents.

White says the centre partnered with the schools because low-income earning parents from the townships “pay high transport costs to provide their children with what they believe to be a better education”.

• Read the complete article at Sowetanlive

National Book Week Sows the Seeds of Reading

by Bontle on 30 Aug 2010   |   

The Sowetan and the Aggrey Klaaste Nation Building Foundation have thrown their weight behind the inaugural National Book Week. The event is presented by the South African Book Development Council and Department of Arts and Culture.

Designed to encourage reading among children and youth, the event hopes to provide a platform to highlight South African and African authors and to celebrate books. It takes place in Newtown, Johannesburg, from September 6 to 13. The official opening is on September 10.

Run under the theme Spreading the Seeds, the event will feature children’s activities and focus on open reading promotion activities, seminars, exhibitions and book launches. It will also promote reading and access to books for the visually impaired.

Elitha van der Sandt, the council’s chief executive, said they were proud to work with global paper manufacturers, Sappi, through their Book Donation Programme, which will donate books to 39 libraries.

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South African Book Development Council Launches National Book Week

by Nonikiwe - Editor on 25 Aug 2010   |   

The National Book Week has been developed to assist the South African Book Development Council (SABDC), in association with the Department of Arts and Culture, to encourage reading amongst South Africans and to find innovative ways to strengthen industry initiatives, develop skills and increase books sales, particularily by South African ands African authors. Read more here.

The South African Book Development Council, in association with the Department of Arts and Culture, proudly launches the inaugural National Book Week.

As part of a national effort to embrace the value of reading and the important role it plays in a nation’s development, the South African Book Development Council, in association with the Department of Arts and Culture, proudly launches the inaugural National Book Week, taking place from 6 – 13 September this year. National Book Week is dedicated to promoting reading and encouraging everyone to explore the magic of books.

Books support every aspect of a child’s development, but are also important for adults, especially because of our skewed development in South Africa.

Reading exposes people to a variety of life situations, enabling them to deal with different aspects of life. This in turn means that we are able to function more effectively in society, enabling us to make better decisions and participate actively and contribute in all aspects of life, e.g. in our economy, at work, in our family. It therefore also empowers us to be critical of life around us and change it for our improvement.

National Book Week will focus its activities this year at Museum Africa in Newtown, Johannesburg and the programme will include Reading Tents for children, youth, the visually impaired and adults, and will provide a fun and appealing environment to encourage reading, as well as celebrate books as part of what we do in everyday life. National Book Week aims to celebrate the book and the love of reading, while showcasing South African and African writers, publishers, booksellers and related businesses.

Elitha van der Sandt, CEO of SABDC says “National Book Week is something new and different, and offers innovative ways to introduce South Africans to the magic of books. We all have a role to play in promoting reading and increasing access to books. There are different organisations and initiatives that already exist to promote and encourage reading, and National Book Week hopes to provide a platform to expose these organisations to a wider audience.”

Entrance to National Book Week programmes will be free, encouraging schools, family and the general public to attend. Industry stakeholders will be provided an opportunity to participate in exhibitions, seminars and training activities which will form part of the interesting programme designed to appeal to the public, as well as key players and investors in the publishing industry.

• Read the complete article at Artlink

RASA Holds Classroom Library and Book Selection Workshop in Durban

by Bontle on 16 Aug 2010   |   

The Reading Association of South Africa’s Kwa-Zulu Natal branch is presenting a new workshop this August about classroom libraries and book selections. Bev Dryer will be presenting the workshop which will take place at the Main Hall of the Department of Education Central Durban Circuit on 6 Acton Road. This workshop takes place on the 19th of August, 2010.

Many teachers have asked for guidance regarding how to link the Methodologies used in Foundations for Learning, to a dynamic Reading Programme, using the Classroom Library as a central focus. This workshop aims to address this problem by providing you with ideas, inspiration and guidance

Time 2pm – 3pm Registration and Publishers displays
3pm – 4.30pm Workshop

Cost: RASA members free (RASA Annual fee R170 – have you paid yet?)
Non RASA members R30.00 per person
Publishers R100.00

• Find out more

Smart Kids Series Launches at Cape Town Book Fair

by Bontle on 28 Jul 2010   |   

Smart kids: Smart-kids for Grades 1-3 has been developed to assist parents, teachers and learners’ to significantly improve literacy and numeracy levels. At this year’s Cape Town Book Fair, parents and teachers of Grade R-3 learners are invited to learn how parents can really support their child’s schoolwork in Literacy and Numeracy, and how teachers can feel secure in recommending Smart Kids to their parents. While parents are listening, Smart-Kids has some fun activities to keep children busy.

Smart-Kids workbooks are dynamic, colourful activity books which children will find captivating and entertaining. Reward certificates, stickers, wipe clean pens and endearing characters make learning fun and interactive. Busy parents are supported by detailed notes and tips which make helping their children at home an easy fun interaction. One type of activity per page as well as clear instructions enables children to work confidently on their own.

• The CTBF Children’s Prgramme

• Visit the Smart-Kids Website

Book details

• Smart-Kids Literacy Workbook Grade 1 by Smart-Kids
  Book homepage
  EAN: 9781770257313
  Find this book with BOOK Finder!

• Slimkoppe Geletterdheid Werkboek Graad 1 by Smart-Kids
  Book homepage
  EAN: 9781770257351
  Find this book with BOOK Finder!

100 Creatives in Lesotho Come Together to Write Children's Books

by Bontle on 28 Jul 2010   |   

Illustrated and photo books were among the products when 100 artists, journalists, photographers, graphic designers, animation and music composers, NGOs, young people and education specialists from all over Lesotho came together to produce local media and communication material for children. The initiative is part of a UNICEF and Lesotho Ministry of Education and Training drive.

“Our products show the importance of living together and caring for each other despite our differences, whether it’s a father caring for his orphaned child, a grandmother taking care of a disabled child or a deaf mother loving and caring for her child as best as any other mother” said one of the participants.

The products include illustrated and photo books, posters, animations and TV and radio spots, focusing on promoting positive customs and demystifying the conventional image of children and caregivers with special needs. Particular emphasis was placed on addressing the most vulnerable children aged 0-6 years.

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Authors and Industry Insiders Discuss Children's Literature in Africa

by Bontle on 28 Jul 2010   |   

This Friday at the Book Fair, Carole Bloch (author/PRAESA’s Early Literacy Unit), Niki Daly (author/ illustrator), Arabella Koopman (publishing consultant), Nombulelo Baba (Centre for the Book/National Library) and Pamela Maseko (UCT) will all be discussing Creating literature for children in Africa.

The discussion starts at 12h00 and is expected to end at 13h30 in Room 1.42 of the Cape Town International Convention Centre.

Librarians, educators and others concerned with creating literature for children in Africa, come and share your ideas about what books our children should be reading, what they should look like AND how we get these books to them!

• Visit the Jacana Website

Book details

• Not so Fast Songololo by Niki Daly
  Book homepage
  Ages 3 to 6
  EAN: 9780711217652
  Find this book with BOOK Finder!

• A Song for Jamela by Niki Daly
  Book homepage
  Ages 3 to 6
  EAN: 9780624047704
  Find this book with BOOK Finder!

• This Baby by Carol Bloch
  Ages 0 to 2
  EAN: 9781919888422
  Find this book with BOOK Finder!

Celebrities Rally Behind Mandela Day Book Campaign

by Bontle on 15 Jul 2010   |   

Celebrities around the country have declared their support for this year’s Mandela Day and are rallying behind the call for quality learning and teaching by dedicating their time reading to children. NMI Executive Director Kimberley Porteus said that this year’s Mandela Day is dedicated to the vision of the MDG 2, calling for quality education for all children.

Poet, singer and author, Nomsa Mazwai and her sister, musician Thandiswa Mazwai will be writing a children’s book and will visit various schools during the month reading to learners. Basetsane Kumalo and Archbishop Thabo Mokgoba have also pledged their support to the cause, urging South Africans to spend the day reading to young people and to donate books to schools.

“The Mandela Day will serve the spirit of South Africa to invest in education the way we never have before. Children’s success in education is through the number of words they are exposed to in the first eight years,” Porteus said.

“We must have justice in education in our lifetime and it needs to happen now,” Mazwai said.

• Read the complete article All Africa