Impact Network Practice Brief: Read Smart Cinyanja

Impact Network Practice Brief: Read Smart Cinyanja

During COVID-19, Impact Network piloted an innovative project to improve early literacy outcomes called “Read Smart”. This program is a literacy intervention for early grade learning based on the use of phonetic charts – essentially speech movement pictures that show the way the mouth moves to make certain sounds.

This program was conducted in partnership with Ursula Rickli who has proven results and experience building local language phonics approaches in a variety of contexts. We are the only ones we know using this method in Zambia to teach children how to read – the majority of Zambian children are taught how to read by memorization.

The pilot was conducted in 2021 at two schools in Eastern Province of Zambia, targeted at Grade 1-2 students. In 2022, we implemented across eight schools, reaching over 900 students.

Importantly, standardized assessment data from the USAID-funded Let’s Read Zambia project allows us to compare pilot schools with a national dataset. Across the nation, the proportion of first grade students at “desirable” or “outstanding” levels was 32-34%, compared to 75% at the pilot schools.