Abstract
The aim of this article is to exploit an unusual occurrence whereby a large group of South African grade 3 students were tested twice, 1 month apart, on the same test in different languages. Using a simplified difference-in-difference methodology, it becomes possible to identify the causal impact of writing a test in English when English is not a student’s home language for 3402 students. The article aims to address the extent to which language factors (relative to non- language factors) can explain the high levels of underperformance in reading and mathematics in South Africa. I find that the language of assessment effect is between 0.3 and 0.7 standard deviations in literacy and 0 and 0.3 standard deviations in numeracy. This is approximately 1–2 years worth of learning in literacy and 0–1 year worth of learning in numeracy. By contrast, the size of the composite effect of home background and school quality is roughly 4 years worth of learning for both numeracy (1.2 standard deviations) and literacy (1.15 standard deviations). These results clearly show that the ‘language effect’ should be seen within the broader context of a generally dysfunctional schooling system. They further stress the importance of the quality of instruction, not only the language of learning and assessment. The fact that the literacy and numeracy achievement of South African children is so low in grade 3 (prior to any language switch to English in grade 4) should give pause to those who argue that language is the most important factor in determining achievement, or lack thereof, in South Africa.
Highlights
The topic of language in education is a contentious one internationally, and this is the case in the South African context
The composite effect of (1) home background and (2) school quality was calculated as the difference between the score of English students on the Systemic Evaluation and the score of non-English students on the Systemic Evaluation
Given that all students wrote the Systemic Evaluation in the LOLT of the school, we argue that this is the sum of all nonlanguage factors
Summary
The topic of language in education is a contentious one internationally, and this is the case in the South African context. The language policies introduced during apartheid held both symbolic and practical value for the ruling government and were resented by the majority of black South Africans. This resentment reached its zenith in the Soweto Uprising on the 16 June 1976 when over 20 000 students protested in the streets in opposition to the introduction of Afrikaans as the medium of instruction (Ndlovu 2004). We resolve to totally reject the use of Afrikaans as a medium of instruction, to fully support the students who took the stand in the rejection of this dialect (and) to condemn the racially separated education system.
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