PRESENTATON AT THE IFA CONFERENCE HELD ON 28 MAY – 02 JUNE 2012AT PRAGUE – CZECH REPUBLICDATE: 30 MAY 2012 THEME: Access to knowledge, education and TrainingTOPIC: A Literacy programme for older people in South Africa PRESENTER: Thandiwe Yeni - a volunteer  

INTRODUCTION South Africa before 1994 was characterised by the existence of 18 separate education departments.

The Acts, Policies and funding differed according to race Adult education was accessible to adult learners and learners who dropped from school at the age of 16 due to certain circumstances

The education system did not consider the education of Senior Citizens as a priority but expected them to be part of the adult Basic Education learner population.

In 1996 all education departments were merged into one department of National education. The constitution of the Republic of South Africa declared education including adult basic education –a right. The country had about 6 million functionally illiterate adults. 4.7 million of this number had never been to school to receive any level of basic literacy. About 1. 2 million of those who had never been to school came from KwaZulu-Natal.

Informal programmes like the Night Schools were of no help to our senior citizens for a myriad of reasons: Time: classes were held between 18H.00 and 20H00. Tutors: were teachers who had their day time duties and had to switch to a specialised methodology designed to teach adults. The methodology did not consider older people and their physical and mental status.

Learning sites: often were not centrally situated calling for a long walk or travelling to them. Transport: Public transport after 19H.00 was and is still a challenge to many of black South Africans whose places of residence are far flung from the cities or towns. Attending night classes meant hiring private transport to deliver and collect one from the learning site. Human settlement: People from rural areas could not have these classes because few sites had electricity. Poor transport or no transport and the proximity to the sites were a great challenge; Subjects: Subjects offered, their content and context were inline with the national curriculum but did not take into considerations the aspirations of the older people.

Back Ground to the Programme

Older people who were Muthande members expressed the deep-felt discrimination by society because of their age and also because of their being illiterate.  They wanted to reap the fruits of democracy by receiving basic education for the first time in their lives.

The constitution of the country upheld the basic human rights, amongst which is the right to basic education for all.

Muthande saw an opportunity to heed the call by the then Minister of education Dr. Kadar Asmal that illiteracy be made a priority in South Africa thus “breaking the back” of illiteracy in South Africa by 2004.

MUTHANDE SOCIETY FOR THE AGED – HELPAGE INTERNATIONAL LITERACY PROGRAMME

Needs analysis With the technical and financial assistance and support by HelpAge International (HAI) Muthande Society for the Aged (MUSA) conducted a joint needs assessment exercise for its members in 1996. Muthande was being driven by the desire to expand activities and programmes for the service centres.

A Consultation exercise done to find out the following:

Who were the potential learners?What did potential learners expect from such a programme?How could the community benefit from the programme? Members of Muthande in all the areas of our operation were consulted through discussions in the service centres and one –on- one talks with the chairpersons of the area committees composed of older people;Friends of Muthande who were in the education sector and those who were involved in education as non-governmental organisations were consulted for advises and guidance.

They never had an opportunity to learn They were denied education as well as land ownership. Those who wanted to have their children educated would take them far away to relatives who lived in trust lands where there were no oppressive farm rules and schools were available and open to every learner although governed by Separate Development policies.  Some farmers did not allow their workers to get married because they were loosing an employee.   Socialisation of black communities was that it was wrong to take the girl child to school as this was going to make her wise and runaway from home and go and lead a promiscuous life in the cities. Girls were more disadvantaged than boys.

Why older people wanted to learn?

Older people wanted to be able to read for themselves not to rely on their grandchildren.  They wanted to be able to read and understand the contents of the official letters, bills, prescriptions on their medicines and count and reconcile cash slips, change and the amount forked out.   They wanted to see and understand their savings, be able to fill forms, withdrawal and deposit slips themselves; signed and not use the thumb fingerprints as their signature.

They wanted to be able to read and understand the Bible.

They wanted to be able to help their grand children with homework as they are the ones who receive them from school.

Who were the potential learners?Older people who were members of Muthande and were participants in all the activities that were offered in the service centres were the potential learners. What did potential learners expect from such a programme? The finding of the needs analysis was that older people prioritized a need for MUSA to initiate a literacy programme that would address their literacy need. Learners expected to have a programme that accepted them as they were.  They needed a curriculum that was going to teach them literacy, numeracy, and writing. It had to take an experiential approach and be theme-based.  Some expected to be assessed and be accredited – wanted to have a report whilst others wanted knowledge and skills without sitting for an examination. They expected to be taught by older people and not young people as they find them lacking patience, tolerance and steadiness.

How the programme came to fruition?  Muthande, as a member of Help Age International who had funded the needs assessment exercise, tabled a proposal for the funding of the programme. Help Age International was able to source funds from DFID (Department For International Development) that covered the training of facilitators, the development of training and tutorial materials, the facilitators’ stipend and administration fro three years. A non-governmental organisation that supported Adult Basic Education and Training- NASA assisted with the selection and training of facilitators who were recruited from the members of the Society.

NASA also assisted with the development of tutorial manuals and assessment tasks to be used at the end of every module. The University of Natal now known as the University of KwaZulu-Natal, through its Centre for Adult Education supported the programme and was appointed by Help Age International as the Mentor. The centre was funded to mentor, monitor and evaluate the programme. Input from the University was beyond the literacy class – students were encouraged to tell their own stories. This resulted in learners writing two books “Isigubhu Sezimanga- The power of the drum and other stories” and “Siyabakhumbula”.   The two publications were a pride to older people, a great achievement and a proof that older people can do it if given the opportunity and support.

Area 

Number of Learners Number of facilitators

Clermont Central

24 1 

KwaDabeka (Sub5)

22 

1

Chesterville 15 1 

Lamontville 20 1 

Total No. of learners 81 4

Classes were conducted during the day at the four learning centres:

The programme was coordinated by a Social Auxiliary Worker who held a Diploma in ABET. Her duty was to support facilitators, monitor their progress and collaborate with NASA and other NGOs in providing in-service training.

The facilitators were older people themselves, all aged between 58 and 81 and some of them were retired teachers.

Classes were and are still four days a week; two hours from 10 to 12 and after lunch would be normal centre activities.

The first cohort wrote an IEB examination. All 25 passed with 7 getting merit.

There is a host of needs addressed by the programme namely:Deep sense of loss felt by older people which was created by not being able to attend school in their younger years for one reason or the other. Financial abuse experienced by some older people, getting cheated at shops, banks, pension payouts and in their own homes by their children and their grandchildren because they cannot count. Ability to read and take their medication correctly. Ability to read a Bible and find chapters and pages in reference. Ability to read buses and street names in order to get around without seeking directions from strangers who might take advantage of them and mug or abuse her.

Needs addressed by the programme

Ability to understand fully the contents of the product sold to her and be able to take informed decisions. Ability to understand their rights and exercise them where necessary. Ability to assist their grand children, those in lower grades, with their home work, school projects and reading.  Ability to use the ATM without seeking assistance from the bank personnel or the security guard 

Older people are vulnerable: When there are challenges in their families they affect them. e.g where a family member is infected with HIVAIDS and is sick, the older person would sacrifice everything and become a fulltime caregiver. Some could not complete their studies because of that.Health and frailness: Some did not complete because of health reasons.Facilitators also had their own challenges and would resign whilst the programme was in progressFinance was the last challenge incurred at the end of the term of the funding but Muthande tried her best to keep it running until she partnered with Masifundisane –a government of KwaZulu-Natal initiative and later with Karigude –another government project.The latest partnership sees to the provision of the learning materials and the stipend for the eight (8) facilitators we are utilising.

Challenges experienced

 The Impact of the programme In 2000 Muthande Literacy Programme enrolled 25 learners to write the Independent Examinations Board (IEB) of these 18 passed the examinations and seven with merit. However, this proved to be unsustainable as it is a very expensive examination.The number of learners increased. In 2005 there were 102 learners at an average of 26 per centre;The number of learners that went through the programme is 250 plus 25 that wrote IEB examinations. The current situation is that there are 135 learners and 8 facilitators for the 8 centres.  Adult literacy and numeracy as basic education does not only offer older people the basic foundation for lifelong learning but also function as the catalyst for knowledge, skills and attitudes necessary for active participation in social, economic and political transformation.

ACHIEVEMENTS

To assess if the programme was able to improve the quality of lives of older people we used the five criteria used by USAID in 1995, by Hashemi, Schuler Riley in 1996 and Jejeebhoy in 1996 being: Knowledge AutonomyDecision-making AutonomyPhysical AutonomyEmotional AutonomyEconomic and Social Autonomy and self-reliance  Using a questionnaire distributed and administered to most graduates by the facilitators, Muthande got the feedback from the learners after their completion of the programme.

Criteria Feedback received by Muthande1.Knowledge Autonomy Older people felt that being

literate was having knowledge and better understanding of issues.

2.Decision-making Autonomy Older people realised that they were now involved in decision making processes, feeling confident and being articulate.

3.Physical Autonomy This improved but general safety still necessitated being accompanied or and very cautious movement.

4.Emotional Autonomy This liberated some older people who now vehemently rejected family domination and abuse by reporting incidents.

5.Economic and Social Autonomy and self-reliance

Economic and social security improved as some older people began to control their finances and enjoyed self-reliance.

The programme raised the awareness of the needs of older people in the communities where the literacy classes were operating. It also demonstrated that older people can and do want to learn. The programme was carefully documented and lessons learned were disseminated both within South Africa and regionally through the Help Age International Network.  The programme motivated older people to engage in other activities that addressed the social and health problems such as HIV /AIDS peer education and awareness programme, Income generating projects such as sewing and food gardening and other programmes aimed at alleviating poverty.

The Department of Education in KwaZulu-Natal has initiated a literacy campaign under the slogan “each- one- teach - one”. The project saw 1200 learners going through the project in one year. This was initially a three year project but was extended to five years. This has since been replaced by Karigude. Muthande literacy programme is unique and has enjoyed acceptance, appreciation and support by the communities. Thanks to HELP AGE INTERNATIONAL for the funding, support and exposure that Muthande has enjoyed all these years.