Omot Okony Olok, the Undersecretary of the Ministry of General Education and Instruction|Courtesy

The Undersecretary of the Ministry of General Education and Instruction, Omot Okony Olok, has attributed poor reading, speaking and numeracy skills among some secondary school and university students to weak foundational learning in literacy and numeracy.

Speaking during the launch of the PlayMatters project in Juba on Wednesday, Olok said strengthening foundational learning is key to improving education outcomes in South Sudan.

“We have a great challenge of achieving foundational learning in numeracy and literacy. So, if PlayMatters is well implemented, this can enhance foundational learning in literacy and numeracy because this is actually the most challenging factor affecting our learners,” he said.

“Some of our learners can reach even secondary school, they cannot read well and they cannot speak well. Even in numeracy also, counting is a problem. So, we hope this will have a very great impact on foundational learning.”

Olok expressed optimism that the four-year PlayMatters initiative, which promotes active teaching and learning through play, would help strengthen literacy and numeracy among young learners.

He also blamed the country’s education challenges on a shortage of qualified teachers, saying many experienced educators have left the profession in search of better opportunities.

“Curriculum is well developed, but who is to implement the curriculum? It is the teacher. So, we have issues with teachers. We have unqualified teachers. They are the ones teaching in the schools,” he said.

“The most qualified teachers have left the schools. They have gone for greener pastures. Those who remain teaching in the schools are unqualified or they don’t have the qualifications to let them go anywhere.”

Olok urged the government to improve teachers’ salaries, working conditions and career progression to attract and retain qualified educators.

“The government has to improve the condition of teachers. It has to motivate teachers. It has to increase the salary of teachers. It has to promote them. Teaching conditions have to be improved. Living conditions have to be improved. This is where you will actually retain teachers in the teaching profession,” he added.

In November 2022, the Ministry of General Education and Instruction reported that 24,694 government-employed teachers were either unqualified or underqualified, highlighting the scale of the challenges facing the education sector.

In a related development, Vice President for the Service Cluster, Hussein Abdelbagi Akol, previously announced plans to screen teachers in government-run schools, remove unqualified teachers from the payroll, and absorb qualified volunteer teachers as part of efforts to improve the quality of education.