IMPARTING LITERACY SKILLS TO EARLY CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT LEARNERS IN ZIMBABWEAN RURAL SETTINGS. TOWARDS ACHIEVING EDUCATIONAL EQUITY

Abstract

This study sought to establish the achievement of equity in the imparting of literacy skills to Early Childhood Development (ECD) learners. The study also intended to understand the literacy skills divide between the rural and urban ECD learners. While many decisions have been taken by organisations which are concerned with equity in education among learners, the problem of inequitable distribution of resources as well as cultural differences among urban and rural populations still remains a barrier to the provision of quality education to many learners in rural settings. Differences in learners’ socioeconomic background explained only part of the performance gap between learners who attend urban schools and those who attend schools in non-urban areas. Using the cultural deprivation theory as a framework to guide the study, the researchers explored the strategies which the rural teachers use to impart literacy skills to early childhood learners in line with SDG4 on equitable quality education. An interpretive qualitative design was used. A Phenomenological case study which utilised observations, interviews as well as photo voice was used to generate data from four ECD teachers in the rural settings. Barriers to achieving equity in terms of  learning resources as well as cultural differences in Zimbabwean rural schools has had a negative impact on imparting literacy skills to learners in most rural settings. These barriers have led to low pass rates, high dropout rates as well as lack of trust in the notion that acquiring an education is paramount to changing the quality of life of individuals. The findings revealed that most teachers tended to use indigenous materials as well as traditional rhymes, folk stories and games to impart literacy skills to the learners. The use of indigenous materials proved to be a very useful way of addressing problems of equity which arose from the uneven distribution of resources between rural and urban schools although the cultural differences still remained a serious impediment to the children’s acquisition of literacy skills. Based on the findings, the study recommends that there is need to come to a common understanding of the definitions of what constitutes knowledge by all stakeholders who are involved in the education of the ECD