Since South Africa’s democratic government was elected to power in 1994, much
attention has been given to restructuring the country’s education system. Peer-mentoring
is one approach to meet current challenges in education given high teacher:learner ratios,
greater diversity in student population and majority of learners being taught in English,
their second and even third language. This research examined the impact of a peermentoring
reading intervention with second language Grade 9 learners. The study utilized
a sample of Grade 9 learners (N = 173) from a school in Gauteng. Biographical
information was obtained and these learners were pre-tested in Grade 8 and post-tested in
Grade 9 2007, using the Stanford Diagnostic Reading Test (SDRT). The entire Grade 9
group received the reading intervention for three months and their results were compared
to a comparison group from the previous year who received no intervention. Results of
learners’ vocabulary, comprehension and academic achievement scores were compared.
Although both the comparison and the experimental groups showed an improvement on
their vocabulary and comprehension scores, the experimental group’s gains were
significantly higher. Of the Grade 9 experimental group, 30 learners (mentees) received
individual paired reading mentoring and their scores were examined to determine the
extent of improvement. The mentees group showed similar significant gains in their
vocabulary and comprehension scores, and showed an overall improvement in their
academic marks. Challenges faced, limitations and recommendations for future study are
discussed
