What was the motivation behind the choice of English as the language for the competition?
The award was initiated to support and motivate the development of supplementary reading materials for a critical stage of learning – the transition period between mother-tongue and English medium instruction, in grade four or when starting secondary school. Since the year 2000, countries in Africa have made remarkable progress in the development of basic education by increasing primary school enrolment and furthering the number of children entering secondary school. However, students’ inability to effectively speak, understand and read in English can severely impede their ability to learn. Efforts to overcome this particular challenge are supported by the Burt Award for African Literature.
