People For Action (PFA) is a registered society under the Indian Societies Registration Act (1860). It works with the government school system to support better teaching and management to improve learning outcomes for children in India through its Transform Schools programme. With an established outreach to 4.6 million children across India, it builds upon the past programmes of its patron donor Kusuma Trust UK’s (KTUK) investments that have developed a credible body of knowledge and models to impact student learning, teacher performance, school management and governance in India.

The problem Transform Schools is trying to solve is increasing gaps in student learning levels in government schools in the time of COVID19. As it is,

• 44% of Indian children in Class 5 are only able to read Class 2 level text

• Seven out of every ten children in Class 8 are able to read Class 2 text

In addition to the existing learning gaps, COVID19 has resulted in a large number of missed learning days for students. The school closures, albeit a much needed safety measure, have resulted in loss of a significant portion of the academic year, much like an extended summer vacation with unprecedented learning loss. While private and urban schools are trying to bridge this gap by transacting learning digitally, students in government schools especially in rural areas with limited economic and skilled access to technology might end up losing out on classroom hours without much time left for remediation.

SAFAL programme will work to prevent learning loss and support students for next 60 days. Upon schools reopening, Transform Learning programme 2.0 will be rolled out with modifications in all interventions States to improve learning outcomes that would have been severely impacted and will in turn improve pass rates and transition.