Breakthrough thinking for early learning: Gov is starting to adopt the home-based learning model
BREAKTHROUGH THINKING FOR EARLY LEARNING IN SOUTH AFRICA: GOVERNMENT IS STARTING TO ADOPT THE HOME-BASED LEARNING MODEL
This learning brief shows how SmartStart has become a game changer in early learning taking place in home and community-based settings. In it, we examine the impact of the programme on preschoolers and those who’ve gone on to attend ‘big school’. The brief also demonstrates the impact that SmartStart programmes have not only on children but also on parents, practitioners and communities.
The early years of a child’s life are the building blocks of their future success. Yet in South Africa over 1.15 million children aged three to five are not in any early learning programme (ELP)1 and fewer than half of four-to five-year-olds attending an ELP are developmentally on track, meaning that they do not meet the expected learning standards for their age. The quality of an ELP a significant determining factor in whether children reach developmental milestones.2 SmartStart – an early learning social franchise with a national footprint – aims to reach one million children aged three to five every year by 2030.
SmartStart realised that it would not be able to reach this target by waiting for new infrastructure to be built in informal settlements and low-income communities, where the need for quality ELPs is greatest. Instead, it demonstrated that it is possible to provide quality early learning for children in existing structures in informal settlements and rural areas, such as residential and community spaces.
The organisation is expanding access to quality programmes wherever young children are cared for, across every type of community, and especially in hard-to-reach low-income settings, through a delivery model that offers income-earning opportunities to women in the care sector. This approach aligns with South Africa’s 2030 Early Childhood Development (ECD) Strategy, released by the Department of Basic Education (DBE) after it took over responsibility for ECD from the Department of Social Development.
QUALITY EARLY LEARNING MATTERS
In South Africa, we see significant gaps not only in access to early learning, but also in access to quality ELPs. The Thrive by Five Index found that fewer than half of four-to-five-year-olds attending an ELP were developmentally on track for their age.3 Yet children who attend at least two years of quality ELPs are
more likely to develop the cognitive, social, and emotional skills they need to successfully transition to formal schooling and navigate the demands of the Foundation Phase (Grades 1 to 3) curriculum.4
Children from low-income communities are less likely than their wealthier peers to have the right learning foundations in place when they start school. According to research, just three out of 10 children from "low-fee" ELPs met the expected learning criteria for their age, but eight out of 10 children in "high-fee" ELPs (costing more than R1 750 per month) were developmentally on track in terms of early learning.5 A threeyear-old child in the wealthiest quintile is 1.6 times more likely to attend an ELP than a child from the poorest quintile.6
THE ECD POLICY LANDSCAPE
South Africa’s National Integrated ECD Policy (NIECDP) commits to providing comprehensive quality age- and developmental stage-appropriate opportunities for learning by 2030, to all children from birth until they enter formal school.7 In South Africa’s National Development Plan (NDP) 2030, government committed to universal access to ECD by 2030, including two years of quality preschool.8
However, several factors continue to limit equitable access to early learning in South Africa, including:
Registration processes for ECD centres that are complex and costly, particularly when it comes to achieving compliance with municipal by-laws. Compliance requirements act as a barrier to accessing state subsidies for ELPs.9 Access to these funds could help ECD centres improve the quality and sustainability of their programmes and contribute to better child outcomes.
Levels of training and experience amongst ECD practitioners vary dramatically, as does the quality of
1 Hall, K. et al. 2024. South African Early Childhood Review 2024. Cape Town: Children’s Institute, University of Cape Town and Ilifa Labantwana, p. 63. Available at: https://tinyurl.com/frf6cyyz
2 Thrive by Five Index. 2024. Homepage. Available at: https://thrivebyfive.co.za/
3 Ibid.
4 Yoshikawa, H. et al. 2013. Investing in our future: The evidence base on preschool education. Society for Research in Child Development. Available at: https://tinyurl.com/5n83sxt5
5 Dawes, A. and Biersteker, L. 2022. Improving the quality of teaching and learning in South African early learning programmes, at scale. DataDrive2030 Policy Brief, p.1. Available at: https://datadrive2030.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/ Datadrive2030_Policy-Brief_24_Nov_final2.pdf
6 Hall, K. et al. 2024. South African Early Childhood Review 2024. Cape Town: Children’s Institute, University of Cape Town and Ilifa Labantwana. Available at: https://tinyurl.com/frf6cyyz
7 Dawes, A. and Biersteker, L. 2022. Improving the quality of teaching and learning in South African early learning programmes, at scale. DataDrive2030 Policy Brief.
8 National Planning Commission. 2012. National Development Plan 2030: Our future –making it work.
9 Real Reform for ECD. 2024. Manifesto for Early Childhood Development: Real Reform for ECD in South Africa. Available at: https://www.ecdreform.org.za/uploads/ecd-manifesto-digital.pdf
the services provided to children. ECD practitioners are typically not adequately remunerated (many earning below the minimum wage) and often work long hours in less than ideal circumstances.10
Children who don’t get the nutrition they need to grow well may become stunted – too short for their age – which can impair brain development. Children need nutritious food for their bodies and minds to grow, especially in the first thousand days of life when their brains are developing the fastest. ELPs can serve as a useful platform to support children’s nutritional needs in the same way that primary schools do through the National School Nutrition Programme (NSNP). However, according to an ECD census conducted in 2021, over 40% of ELPs are not registered, meaning they were unable to access the ECD subsidy to help pay for food.11
Since the ECD census was conducted, the DBE and its social partners launched the Bana Pele Mass Registration Drive to reduce the number of known unregistered ELPs so that more children can benefit from the ECD subsidy.
POSITIVE SHIFTS IN GOVERNMENT POLICY
Like the Bana Pele mass registration drive, the release of South Africa's 2030 Strategy for ECD Programmes signals a willingness from government to do things differently to overcome some of the barriers mentioned in the previous section. The strategy aims to create a new social compact among all ECD stakeholders, encouraging coordination of resources and collaboration aligned with a common strategy. It projects a need for 115 000 new early learning facilities to accommodate 2.9 million children aged three to five by 2030.12 In recognition of the stark reality that we cannot afford to wait for new infrastructure, government policy is beginning to shift towards a focus on using existing infrastructure for early learning, such as residential and shared spaces like community halls. This important shift in government thinking is illustrated by the following phrase:
“…
as a pragmatic and affordable strategy for equitable access, there will be a greater need for ELPs to be run from community-based facilities that make use of existing infrastructure, including residential venues”.13
While government has positioned this as a short-term solution until purpose-built infrastructure becomes available, this framing risks underestimating the long-term value and potential of home-based provision. Evidence suggests that, with the right support, these settings can deliver quality early learning at scale14 – particularly in communities where more formal infrastructure may remain out of reach. This is precisely what SmartStart has been doing since 2015. It is an example of how government can harness the energy and effectiveness of informal socio-economic networks. These networks support local economies, particularly in areas where formal markets and institutions are weak or inaccessible.
THE SMARTSTART MODEL
As the country’s first and largest early-learning delivery platform, SmartStart enables delivery at scale through a network of partners and branches that train and support early learning practitioners to implement a standardised, evidence-based programme for children aged three to five. The model is a social franchise that offers a scalable solution in communities where access to ELPs is limited, and purposebuilt infrastructure is constrained by broader socio-economic conditions. Through its network, SmartStart recruits and trains practitioners to run their own programmes.
Backed by evidence and global best practice, the SmartStart programme equips three- to five-year-old children with the foundational skills they need to learn more complex concepts later on. At the same time, it enables practitioners to earn
10 Stach, M. and Motsoeneng, P. 2022. Practitioner training, mentoring, and support in Early Learning Programme quality. Action Brief Available at: https://tinyurl.com/54crdrrj
11 Department of Basic Education. 2021 Early Childhood Development Census. Pretoria. Available at: https://datadrive2030.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/ecdc-2021report.pdf
12 Department of Basic Education of the Republic of South Africa. 2023. South Africa’s 2030 Strategy for Early Childhood Development Programmes. Pretoria. p.18. Available here: https://tinyurl.com/5duvf7j2
Evaluation. Available here: https://smartstart.org.za/files/briefing-1.pdf
an income as micro-social entrepreneurs, building a growing cohort that could be integrated into a future national ECD service delivery system.
SmartStart has reached nearly 300 000 children since its inception, through approximately 22 000 practitioners across nine provinces.15 SmartStart’s bold and ambitious work in lowincome communities is spurred by the conviction that children who attend quality ELPs have a much better chance of thriving compared to children who do not.
SMARTSTART CHILD OUTCOMES EVALUATION IN 2023
In 2023, SmartStart evaluated the efficacy of its programmes using the Early Learning Outcomes Measure (ELOM) – a set of population-based child assessment tools designed to determine whether children are developmentally on track for their age. Independent researchers tracked the progress of a representative sample of 551 children in 325 SmartStart ELPs over an eight-month period. They found that overall, and adjusted for age maturation, the percentage of children developmentally on track increased by 20 points during the research period, from 45% to 65%, while the proportion of children who were falling behind nearly halved.16 The biggest improvements were observed in early maths, followed by fine motor skills and early literacy. This evaluation shows that SmartStart is shifting outcomes for children.
But how do these early gains translate into the transition to formal schooling? A SmartStart-commissioned study explored this by gathering insights from teachers, parents, and children themselves. The research focused on a group of eight- to 13-year-olds from rural and urban areas in four provinces (Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, the Western Cape and the Eastern Cape) between November 2023 and April 2024. This smallscale qualitative research study set out to document the children’s experiences of their education journeys and the perceived benefits of early learning in preparing them for ‘big school’.
SMARTSTART ALUMNI RESEARCH FINDINGS
The alumni research found that SmartStart not only improved access to early learning in low-income communities, but also provided quality early learning, ensuring that children had access to the best foundation to start school.
The following are the major findings of the as-yet-unpublished report:
SmartStart has transformed and improved the value of early learning in low-income communities. Previously, parents only associated early learning with a place where their children could go to play and sleep while they were at work. In communities where SmartStart programmes exist, early learning is now increasingly associated with children acquiring important academic and life skills.
15 SmartStart. 2025. Homepage. Available at: https://smartstart.org.za/
16 SmartStart. 2025. ECD Breakthrough: New South African Study shows the way for taking quality early learning to every young child. Available at: https://smartstart.org.za/news.html
“SmartStart is raising awareness regarding the importance of early learning because if your child goes to SmartStart, the teachers provide workshops that train parents on how to make sure early learning continues in the home.”
- Anonymous parent, Gauteng
“I only learned that early learning is important to build self-esteem [and] prepare kids for primary school so that they are able to grasp things fast, when my child went to a SmartStart centre.”
– Anonymous, parent, Gauteng
2
SmartStart children receive a superior early learning curriculum, resulting in better academic and life skills. These include legible handwriting and the ability to follow a school routine, engage in storytelling, and share with other children before starting Grade R. Interviews with teachers and parents in the community highlight a widely held belief that children enrolled in SmartStart benefit from a top-notch early learning curriculum.
The programme equips them with essential academic and life skills, which are often not found in other early education settings in low-income areas. Notably, parents of children who have graduated from SmartStart often choose to enrol their younger children in the same programme, foregoing other options. Some even go to great lengths and make financial sacrifices to ensure their children continue experiencing the advantages that come with SmartStart.
3
SmartStart has raised the bar on what parents expect of early learning practitioners. Parents expressed that it was only after discovering SmartStart that they began to form clear expectations regarding the quality and content of ELPs, as well as the characteristics they desire in early learning practitioners. In communities where SmartStart is well-integrated, parents now view a skilled and capable early learning practitioner as someone who has received training through SmartStart.
SmartStart offers a range of activities and support aimed at engaging parents regularly. These include parent meetings and end-of-term reports that keep caregivers informed about their child's progress. Additionally, there are initiatives designed to boost parent participation in early learning.
“SmartStart is so good that even though I have now moved and live far from the nearest SmartStart creche, I pay for transport fees for my youngest child to attend there because I have seen the difference they have made in my older child’s academic preparation
“With my own children, I did not know that a preschool teacher has to be someone who has received formal training. We thought people who open creches are just ordinary women who love children and maybe who want to do this as a business. But once my grandchild, the one who is [now] in Grade 4, went to SmartStart and I learnt that his teacher is well-trained, we said ‘no man not just anybody can open a creche’, because you can see it in the children if a [preschool] teacher is properly trained.”
- Anonymous grandparent, KwaZulu-Natal
SmartStart alumni can clearly articulate, symbolically or otherwise, that their SmartStart early learning foundation has not only made it easy to adapt and excel in primary school, but has filled them with hope for and confidence about their future. SmartStart alumni exhibited remarkable analytical abilities and critical reflection skills, which are not commonly depicted in portrayals of low-income children.
These traits were evidenced in the photographs that the alumni took for the Photovoice component of the study. For instance, one memorable photograph taken by a SmartStart alumnus from Gauteng depicted a playground with a swing, and when researchers asked the child to share what the picture symbolised, they said the swing reminded them of how their SmartStart teacher was always there to propel them forward when they were struggling to learn something new.
SmartStart has transformed how the education system connects to the realities of low-income communities, by making early learning not only physically accessible but also embedded within the social ecosystem of villages, townships and informal settlements. Parents place high value on the convenience and psychosocial reassurance that comes with placing their children in SmartStart programmes, as a result of these creches being physically, socially and culturally embedded in their communities.
“Even
if I was not able to pick up my child, the creche owner was able to keep her and I had no problem because I know her, we go to church and even masingcwabisane (burial society) together.”
– Anonymous parent, KwaZulu-Natal
Below is a list of the academic and life skills that were corroborated by the alumni children’s teachers and parents.
ACADEMIC SKILLS:
Gross and fine motor skills.
Basic numeric skills (counting, the ability to identify/ recognise and write numbers).
The ability to identify all of the letters of the alphabet.
Most children exit fully competent in writing their names.
Most children exit able to tell stories, repeat stories read to them, and know how to pay attention and sit quietly during story time.
Children exit able to convey what they are learning at school to others.
LIFE SKILLS:
Respect and discipline.
The ability to follow a routine.
The ability to follow instructions.
The ability to socialise with other children in a kind manner.
An understanding of the value of being helpful to others.
Psychological and social preparedness for primary school.
THE VALUE OF HOME-BASED LEARNING
These findings suggest that the effectiveness of the SmartStart model in early learning may lie not in its homebased approach as a secondary factor, but in its role as a core feature of the programme. By addressing not only the tangible barriers but also the myriad intangible psychosocial, cultural, and practical challenges that can hinder lowincome children's access to early learning opportunities, SmartStart demonstrates that home-based early education can transform and decolonise the traditional understanding of early childhood development. This transformation aligns more closely with the lived experiences and practices of marginalised communities.
MORE SUPPORT IS NEEDED
The insights into the significant impact of home-based facilities should not be seen to imply that home-based ELPs are free from challenges requiring urgent attention from stakeholders and decision-makers. In fact, individual interviews with SmartStart practitioners clearly revealed that the potential of home-based ELPs must be strengthened and maintained through supportive legislation, investment in the infrastructure of these facilities, and assistance in income generation.
Additionally, it is important to recognise the extra support needed by practitioners. Both government and private sector stakeholders must understand that low-income communities rely heavily on the selfless efforts of women in low-income communities, who operate under extremely challenging structural conditions and therefore require substantial support that goes beyond what civil society partners like SmartStart can offer.
WHAT’S NEXT?
The SmartStart programme shows that building on existing resources such as home-based learning, and strengthening them with key quality elements like practitioner training, a strong programme design, and ongoing support, offers a valuable yet underused approach.
It is up to the public and private sector, and all those who want a better future for our children, to embrace that approach.
This is the learning experience of:
This learning brief was developed by Hopolang Selebalo, Yanga Zembe and Daniella Horwitz, and edited by Rahima Essop.
