GEORGETOWN, Guyana, Sept 9, CMC – Guyana has launched a five-year literacy strategic plan that it said is aimed at ensuring that children are literate by Grade Four, through consistent home, school and community involvement programmes.

Education Minister  Priya Manickchand said a child’s ability to read would create opportunities for academic and vocational success and urged the population to play its part in eradicating illiteracy in the country.

“As far as literacy rates go in our country, we are at the best place we have ever been…while we are the best place we have ever been, we are not comfortable and we as a people should not comfortable of where we are as a nation as far as literacy goes,” she said.

The government said under the plan, schools will be mandated to ensure that every effort is made to have students reading at Grade 4, reading tents and centres will be established country-wide, and literacy awareness programmes will be promoted via television and radio.

There will also be classes for parents with reading difficulties, and business organisations, clinics and government agencies will be asked to create literacy friendly environments. Resource materials will also be given to parents indicating how they can enhance the ability of their child’s reading.

Teachers’ capacity to implement an effective literacy programme will be improved, massive training and retraining of teachers and head teachers will be done, the government said, adding that support materials to improve literacy throughout the education sector will also be developed and/or implemented, reading clubs and libraries will be developed in every school while learning packages will be created for absentees.

According to a government statement, a test conducted last year among Grade One to Six students based on literacy standards, bench marks and guidelines, found that 32 per cent of those tested were poor and below the level.

"That does not mean that the other children could not read, they were perhaps not reading at grade level, it doesn't mean they were completely illiterate...I am not suggesting that 68 per cent of our school population is illiterate," the Education Minister added.