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Basic Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube has welcomed the start of the Mother Tongue-based Bilingual Education (MTbBE) Grade 4 assessments. Learners wrote the Natural Science and Technology paper on 24 November, followed by the Mathematics assessment on 25 November. The assessments show a major step in strengthening foundational learning and improving comprehension in the early grades.
What Happened
Grade 4 learners across South Africa began writing the MTbBE assessments, which allow pupils to learn and write in both their home language and English. The initiative aims to deepen understanding, improve concept mastery, and support literacy and numeracy performance.
A total of 11 948 schools across all nine provinces are implementing MTbBE this year. These schools reflect the country’s multilingual identity and the Department’s push to use language as a tool for better learning outcomes.
Official Response
Minister Gwarube described the start of the assessments as an important moment in the sector’s efforts to rebuild learning quality. “Mother-tongue instruction is one of the most powerful tools available to improve learning outcomes. When learners understand the language of teaching and learning, they engage more confidently, grasp concepts more deeply, and progress more successfully through the system,” she said.
The Minister also linked MTbBE to the Department’s broader strategy to reverse learning losses, strengthen reading levels, and boost mathematics performance in the early phases.
The Department confirmed that provinces offering MTbBE include:
- Eastern Cape: 3 860 schools – Afrikaans, IsiXhosa, Sesotho
- KwaZulu-Natal: 3 558 – Afrikaans, IsiXhosa, IsiZulu, Sesotho
- Limpopo: 2 229 – IsiNdebele, Tshivenda, IsiZulu, Sepedi, Setswana, Xitsonga
- Mpumalanga: 768 – Afrikaans, IsiNdebele, IsiXhosa, IsiZulu, Sepedi, Sesotho, Setswana, Siswati, Xitsonga
- North West: 950 – Afrikaans, IsiXhosa, Sesotho, Setswana
- Free State: 204 – Afrikaans, IsiXhosa, IsiZulu, Sepedi, Sesotho, Xitsonga, Setswana
- Northern Cape: 172 – Afrikaans, IsiXhosa, Sesotho, Setswana
- Western Cape: 187 – Afrikaans, IsiXhosa, Sesotho
- Gauteng: 20 – all 11 official languages
The Minister thanked teachers, provincial departments, school managers and parents for supporting the programme throughout the year.
Community Impact
The rollout of MTbBE has been welcomed by parents and educators who believe learners perform better when taught in a language they understand. The approach is expected to improve reading comprehension, strengthen numeracy foundations and give learners confidence in the classroom.
