All learning starts in the home. These early learning activities stimulate children’s interest and their cognitive and social development. However, South Africa is a vastly unequal country — which was highlighted again by our showing in the 2015 Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS).

Participating in Timss at the grade five level gave the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) an opportunity to learn much more about activities in the pre-grade one period, both in terms of a child’s early home environment and preschool institutions and their impact on that child’s achievement.

Forty-eight countries participated in Timss 2015 at the grade four or five level. The Timss numeracy study provides an opportunity for South Africa to estimate its achievement in relation to other countries and establish the baseline for what our children’s mathematics achievement should be at age 11.