During the 1990s, many low-income countries were committed to the United Nations Education
for All (EFA) goals of ensuring universal access to primary education and learners’ completion
of all primary grades (Gove & Wetterberg 2011:1). Since then some countries, including South
Africa, have made impressive strides towards expanded access to schooling. Much of the
progress has stemmed from additional inputs such as classrooms, educators, and textbooks and
this has created the assumption that with sufficient inputs, learning will naturally flow.
However, increases in enrollment rates alone have not always translated into high quality
education or even basic learning.
Additionally, South Africa’s unique politically burdened history has had profound effects on the
education system. Due to its multifarious population and the amalgamation of various sectors,
including education, the Department of Basic Education was and still is faced with the daunting
challenge of providing quality education to its diverse citizens. This has resulted in the
establishment of multiracial, multilingual, and multicultural schools. The corollary is that
schools have become more inclusive. However, the ability of South Africa to educate its
learners cannot be measured by access to schooling or enrollment rates alone, but rather by its
ability to impart to learners the knowledge and skills necessary to function as literate and
numerate members of the broader society.
Within the context of EFA several international organisations began to conduct early grade
reading assessments in many developing countries in Africa and Asia. These studies include
SACMEQ, PIRLS and prePIRLS, EGRA, and ASER. The aim of these assessments is to
facilitate the expansion of quality education by providing the necessary data to monitor
educational quality, and by improving the research capacity and technical skills of educational
planners.