"Not Ready": Cape Town Journalist Questions SA Schools' AI Rollout While 80% of Grade 4s Can't Read

• Cape Town journalist Michaela De Lim raised concerns about the Department of Basic Education's push to introduce AI in classrooms
• De Lim pointed to UNESCO research warning that language and media literacy skills must come before AI use in schools
• South Africans were divided in the comments, with many questioning whether schools even have the infrastructure to support the rollout

A Cape Town woman is asking a question many South African parents are thinking about. Michaela De Lim, founder of the Youth Boost Initiative, shared a direct-to-camera video on 21 July 2026 questioning whether South African schools are ready for artificial intelligence in the classroom.

De Lim pointed out that the Department of Basic Education has been trying to roll out a compulsory Coding and Robotics curriculum for Grades R to 9 for years. The subject was meant to be fully implemented by the end of 2024 but went through repeated revisions, pushing the full rollout into 2025. Even then, the DBE acknowledged that many schools lacked the resources to teach it.

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AI before basics are covered

What concerned De Lim most was the gap between ambition and reality. She cited UNESCO research, the same source the DBE has leaned on for its new history curriculum, which warned that learners need strong language and media literacy skills before they can meaningfully use AI.

Yet current data shows that over 80% of Grade 4 learners cannot read for meaning, and around 15% of Grade 3s cannot read at all, figures the education minister has herself acknowledged publicly.

De Lim also referenced a meta-analysis showing that younger users tend to rely more heavily on AI tools, which can reduce the development of critical thinking skills over time.

"AI can be helpful in education," she said, "but we need to get the basics right first."

Mzansi weighs in

South Africans in the comments section on the Facebook page were largely sceptical, and some were outright frustrated:

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@Keenan Watson wrote:

"How can they implement something which they themselves don't even understand? Asking for a friend."

@Natrishka Naidoo-Korevaar said:

"How are you going to implement coding when half our schools don't have proper computers?"

@David de Mattos added:

"AI needs to be totally banned in schools and education systems. At least till matric qualification."

@Gino Daniels joked:

"At least we know we won't be ruled by intelligent robots in South Africa in the near future. So we should thank the ANC."

@Boipelo Manoko kept it light:

"Mic and hand movement had me digressing to a high volume-low volume situation."

Watch her full video here:

More on SA education

• Briefly News recently reported on the CUT Welkom Campus community mourning the loss of a fourth-year education student, remembered fondly by fellow students and staff.
• Julius Malema is set to face criminal prosecution after AfriForum successfully pushed for charges over a false allegation he made against a school principal.
• Meanwhile, a South African TikToker sparked a heated debate after arguing that the country's education system holds up better against first-world nations than people assume.

Source: Briefly News