In 2003, Grade 3 Gauteng learners were functioning at an average language skills level of 39 percent (Department of Education systemic evaluation). The Department’s Grade 6 evaluation results (February 2006) also revealed poor levels of literacy amongst Gauteng learners:

Grade 3:

• Life Skills :	54%
• Literacy :	54%
- Listening Comprehension :	68%
- Reading and Writing :	39%
• Numeracy :	30%

Grade 6:

• Life Skills :	53%
• Literacy :	52%
- Listening Comprehension :	67%
- Reading and Writing :	39%
• Numeracy :	32%

Although literacy scores were higher than numeracy scores, this was due to higher scores obtained in the listening comprehension, rather than in reading and writing. Learners performed adequately in multiple-choice tasks but performed poorly in tasks that required them to produce written responses. Literacy scores were influenced by the following factors:
• Educators reported that the shortage of learning and teaching material had an influence on learning. This was supported by the fact that learners in institutions that had less teaching and learning material scored lower than learners in better equipped institutions
• Learners’ participation in classroom activities was found to be low, despite the emphasis on learner participation in outcomes-based education Other evaluation findings included:
• 23 percent had access to newspapers and magazines
• 53 percent had fewer than ten books
• 53 percent of learners' families did not have any books in the home
• Only 27 percent of schools had libraries

• Research found that the way money is spent is crucial to students’ performance
• The focus for education spending should be on teacher training, good learner material and time spent on teaching Prof. Jonathan Jansen, Dean of Education, Pretoria University