Results of a nationwide survey of precursor reading skills across South Africa’s languages

• In Event: Measuring reading benchmarks across linguistic divides: The Funda Uphumelele National Reading Survey of South Africa

Proposal

The Funda Uphumelele National Reading Study was a nationally representative survey of early grade reading outcomes conducted in South Africa in 2025. The survey covered 710 schools and was representative of every language and every province in the country. This paper reports on the key results emerging from the study.
The headline findings relate to the percentages of children reaching critical reading benchmarks in their home language and in English as a First Additional Language at the end of Grades 1, 2, and 3. Results are disaggregated by language, province, and socio-economic categories of schools, revealing both significant inequalities in early reading outcomes and the overall low proportions of children achieving benchmarks in precursor skills such as letter–sound recognition and oral reading fluency.
Analysis of the relationship between these precursor skills and reading comprehension confirms the central importance of these precursor skills for achieving the ultimate outcome of reading with comprehension. A striking and concerning feature of the results is the wide gender gap in early literacy, with girls substantially outperforming boys—especially in more vulnerable communities. The findings also show strong relationships between proficiency in home-language reading and the ability to read with comprehension in English, underscoring the strategic importance of establishing a solid foundation in home-language literacy.
In home-language reading, the main constraints appear to be decoding skills—particularly achieving fluency in letter–sound and word recognition—rather than limitations in vocabulary, morphological awareness, or semantic knowledge. By contrast, in English the primary constraints are vocabulary and broader language skills.
Finally, the paper presents results from a multivariable model predicting reading outcomes based on learner, school, and teacher characteristics. Overall, the Funda Uphumelele study provides a crucial baseline against which to track progress in South Africa’s teaching and learning of reading in the years to come.

Authors

• STEPHEN G TAYLOR, Department of Basic Education

• Nompumelelo L Mohohlwane, Department of Basic Education

• Asanda Gontse Lobelo, Department of Basic Education

• Lesang Mbali Sebaeng, Department of Basic Education

• Zamangwe Zanele Zwane, Department of Basic Education