Teacher Training at the Centre of the Literacy Crisis

On 21 May 2026, the Right to Read Campaign convened educators, researchers, legal experts, policymakers, civil society organisations, and education stakeholders in Johannesburg for the Teacher Training Roundtable to confront one of the most urgent challenges facing South Africa: ensuring that every child learns to read for meaning.

Held under the theme, “Together Toward Reading Proficiency: Aligning Teacher Training, Standards, and Accountability”, the roundtable focused on one of the Right to Read Campaign’s core pillars, Teacher Training, and explored how stronger systems, clearer standards, and meaningful support for teachers are essential to addressing the country’s literacy crisis.

Around 60 participants attended the roundtable, including representatives from literacy organisations, university education departments, the Department of Basic Education, the Department of Higher Education and Training, and broader civil society. Throughout the day, participants engaged critically with the systemic gaps affecting literacy outcomes and explored practical reforms aimed at strengthening both pre service and in service teacher training.

The roundtable reaffirmed a shared understanding that improving literacy outcomes requires coordinated action, stronger accountability, and meaningful investment in teacher development and support.

A major concern raised throughout the discussions was the significant inconsistency in how teachers are prepared to teach reading. Across universities, there are major discrepancies in how foundation phase literacy is taught to future educators, with no common agreement on the minimum content and competencies that teacher training programmes should include.

For teachers already working in schools, the inconsistencies continue. Provinces differ significantly in the frequency of literacy training provided, the content covered, the budgets allocated for teacher support, and the models used to roll out training programmes. These uneven approaches contribute to disparities in teaching quality and learner outcomes across the country.

The roundtable featured six speakers from government, academia and civil society, including Right to Read’s Cameron McConnachie, who highlighted the need for stronger national frameworks and clearer accountability measures to support quality literacy instruction.

Participants remained deeply engaged throughout the day, not only with the issues being discussed, but with one another’s experiences and expertise. Participants engaged in robust discussions on what meaningful reforms could look like, how they could be implemented in practice, and what coordinated action is needed to strengthen teacher training and improve literacy outcomes.

One session included a demonstration of the government’s teacher training website by a member of the development team. Attendees had the opportunity to ask questions about the platform, engage with the curriculum and training tools available, and provide feedback on areas for future improvement and expansion.

Following the presentations, participants divided into four working groups to discuss different themes relating to literacy and teacher training. These smaller discussions focused on identifying practical solutions, implementation challenges, and possible pathways toward stronger national standards and accountability mechanisms.

What emerged clearly from the roundtable was a collective recognition that South Africa’s literacy crisis cannot be addressed through isolated interventions alone. Ensuring that every child learns to read for meaning requires a coordinated national effort that strengthens teacher preparation, supports educators meaningfully, and creates accountability across the education system.

The proposals and recommendations emerging from the roundtable are expected to be released in the third quarter of the year.

South Africa’s literacy crisis is not inevitable. It is shaped by policy choices, investment decisions, and the systems built to support teaching and learning. Strengthening teacher training remains one of the clearest and most immediate ways to begin changing how the story ends for millions of children across the country.