‘Grade 6 learners improve literacy skills, but maths remains huge challenge’ –Dugmore

By Ilhaam Hoosain
23 April 2008

A key finding of the latest study by the Western Cape Education Department (WCED) shows that Grade 6 learners in the Western Cape are making steady progress in improving their literacy skills, but still struggle with mathematics.

The WCED assessed the literacy and numeracy skills of 71,874 Grade 6 learners from 1,034 schools in the province in October and November 2007.

The percentage of learners achieving more than 50% for literacy across the Western Cape has increased gradually over the past four years from 35% in 2003 to 42.1% in 2005 and 44.8% in 2007. This reflects an increase of 9.8% since 2003.

While the results reflect consistent progress in literacy, the department still has a long way to go to ensure that learners meet the assessment standards of the national curriculum for both literacy and numeracy.