Helping children become confident readers

Reading is one of the most important foundations for a child’s education. Over the 2025–26 academic year, Hope4Malawi's literacy programmes have continued to grow across Tapani, Chimwembe and Chipwepwete Primary Schools, and we have been encouraged to see children becoming more confident and capable readers.

Our literacy work includes phonics in Standards 3 and 4, Guided Reading, school libraries and our iPad Reading Programme for Standard 7. Together, these give children opportunities to develop their reading skills, practise independently and build confidence in English.

How our reading programmes are making a difference

This year, we have been able to look more closely at whether our programmes are making a difference. The strongest evidence comes from our Guided Reading assessments, where approximately 84% of children who were reassessed improved their reading level. Many moved up one level, while some progressed by two or even three levels.

We have also seen encouraging results across the schools. Chimwembe Primary showed the strongest overall improvement, with better examination results, excellent phonics attendance and significant progress in Guided Reading.

At Tapani Primary, children continued to perform strongly despite disruption caused by storm damage to the library roof. At Chipwepwete Primary, examination results declined, but reading assessments still showed strong progress, highlighting that exam results alone do not always tell the whole story.

The wider examination results reflect this mixed picture: Chimwembe's overall pass rate increased from around 58% to 64%, while Tapani remained consistently high at around 80%. Chipwepwete fell from around 73% to 55%, while Mafunde, which does not currently receive our literacy interventions, remained broadly stable at around 68%.

We are careful not to attribute examination results directly to our literacy programmes, as many factors affect children's performance. However, when the results are considered alongside the reading assessments, phonics progress and feedback from teachers, the overall evidence is encouraging.

Learning new skills and gaining confidence to become stronger readers

We have also learned that small practical changes can make a big difference. For example, attendance at our after-school iPad sessions improved when we began providing a simple snack beforehand, as some children had previously been going home because they were hungry.

There is still more to do, particularly around attendance and consistent staffing, but we are excited to continue developing these programmes. We hope to extend literacy support to Mafunde once its new library is open, while continuing to strengthen Guided Reading and phonics across our other schools.

Most importantly, this year's evidence gives us confidence that our literacy programmes are helping children become stronger readers. And behind every statistic is a child gaining the confidence and skills they need to access their education and build a brighter future.

Thank you for helping us make this work possible.

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Can you help a child in Malawi?

Thanks to the support of our partners, sponsors, fundraisers and volunteers, Hope4Malawi's Youth Development programmes, building projects, resourcing initiatives, and student sponsorships continue to provide life-changing opportunities for children in rural Blantyre.

Contact us for further information on how to get involved.