Fighting illiteracy with radio (31.03.2011 00:00) - 668
The use of interactive radio instruction programmes is one of the pillars of the Learning Village, a project of the Government of South Sudan’s (GoSS) Department of Alternative Education Systems in the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology.
"Children showed great interest in the use of radio sets."
According to Evalino Elias, an outreach coordinator, the Learning Village programme has been well received in all 59 participating schools of Yei River County in Central Equatoria State. "Children showed great interest in the use of radio sets," he said. "The programme enhances pupils’ knowledge retention in schools."
He added, however, that the programme is hampered by teacher transfers, the government’s civil service reform programme known as retrenchment (downsizing) and delays in payment of teachers’ salaries.
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For all the anticipation in the run-up to South Sudan’s independence in July, the world's newest nation can take no pride in having one of the lowest literacy rates in the world. Estimates range from 12-24%. After decades of conflict that crippled key sectors, development partners working with GoSS have been taking unprecedented steps to foster development, with particular emphasis on education.
Radio is used as an alternative teaching tool in schools.To help reverse South Sudan's poor quality of education and some the world's lowest school attendance, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is supporting the Education Development Centre (EDC) to use radio as a means of delivering high quality education to children in Southern Sudan as well as the disputed regions of Abyei, Blue Nile and Southern Kordofan.
The EDC trains selected teachers in Southern Sudan Interactive Radio Instruction (SSIRI), which aims to improve the quality of basic education and make it more widely available. Another objective is to strengthen English language skills across all age groups by using radio as a mode of instruction.
Targeting primary school children up to fourth grade, the Learning Village focuses on local language literacy, English, mathematics and life skills. Solar-powered radio sets are used to play pre-recorded programmes that are broadcasted on local radio stations. Digital MP3 players substitute radios in areas without access to transmission signals.
Another programme, Radio-Based Education for All (RABEA) targets audiences with various levels of English language skills, focusing on arithmetic, health, and civic education programmes such as disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration (DDR). Elections, land ownership, democracy and women’s rights also form part of the curriculum.
"I was able to understand my rights to vote or to stand in an election."
Habib Muhamad, an avid radio listener in Yei, praised RABEA as a source of information about elections, democracy and other subjects. "It is through this radio program that I was able to understand my rights to vote or to stand in an election," he said. "I have also learned that land in Southern Sudan belongs to the people but its management is regulated by our government."
The initiative faces some logistical challenges. Godfrey Data Joseph, a deputy head teacher at Payawa Primary School in Mugwo Payam, said teachers are unable to implement the programme when they’re transferred to areas with different local languages.
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Joel Yeka, a teacher at Lizira Primary School in Yei Town Payam, acknowledges the importance of the programme’s packaging, including the use of catchy songs. But he sees a potential drawback: although pupils and teachers follow the Learning Village broadcasts, they do not take notes in the exercise books. This may make pupils lazy” about writing in the future, Yeka warned.
SSIRI, a six-year programme begun in 2007, is expected to end in 2012 when it will be taken over by the Ministry of Education Science and Technology.
