Focus Area: Foundational Literacy & Numeracy

The status of foundational literacy and numeracy have been long standing issues in India. COVID has only exacerbated the learning crisis. As of 2022 ASER results, only 21% of children from grade 3 are able to read grade 2 text and 26% of children from grade 3 are able to do basic subtraction. This learning gaps widen as learners progress to higher grades. Amidst this concerning scenario however, India is experiencing an extremely opportune and supportive policy push. With the directive of the New Education Policy, the Government of India has shown commitment towards achieving foundational learning levels for all students in grade 3 by 2026-27, with schemes like Nipun Bharat and increased budget allocations. Foundational literacy and numeracy is the centre of the education conversations and hence, accelerated efforts are underway. In order to contribute to the solution building, the FLN sub-focus area proposes to tackle the issue of low learning levels as a ‘continuum’; i.e. from early childhood education to grade grade 5. We aim to focus on systemic levers such as pedagogy, assessment, governance and parent engagement in order to create impact in building school readiness in learners, help them develop strong foundations and continue learning.