Towards 100% Adult Literacy Battling a Scourge

In the Age of Information Reading is a fundamental skill Provides access to vast storehouse of knowledge Is on the path to acquisition of the other basic skills like wRiting and aRithmetic, given good self-instructional material Is at the crux of self-development

Scourge Over 200 million adult illiterates in India Spread of literacy and population growth are at par with each other – leading to near stagnation in wiping out adult illiteracy The National Literacy Mission has shown the will, the Government has the infrastructure, the NGOs are keen – but the logistics seem to outweigh the the effort

Technology to the aid The need to complement and supplement tools Technology is useful only when it is a multiplier Technology is useful only when it enhances performance and establishes uniform quality Is not an end in itself – it is a human problem that we deal with

Not by Tools Alone Need commensurate investment to battle the problem Need willing and able hands Need processes and infrastructure Need quality control and assurance Need management to achieve goals Need value to drive the vision and mission

No Silver Bullet One size or kind does not fit all Need an arsenal to cope with problems of variety and scale Information and Communication Technologies provide a ray of hope.

TCS experiments – a beginning Builds into the National Literacy Mission’s programme and supplements and complements it Uses computers to propagate reading skills in 40 hours of instruction over 8 to 10 weeks Multiplies a teachers ability to scale up in numbers Lowers the entry barrier for experience in teachers Gets neo literates to be self motivated and independent in their efforts to learn further

Current Status in Guntur District Total number of current operational centres – 212 Total number of adults who have learned to read during Feb-May 2002 – 2618 Current active batches, due to complete between July and September – 1874 Drop outs Current success rate – 89% Expectations Number of Centres by end June – 415 Scale up: between 8,000 to 10,000 to be addressed by these centres

Learning from the experiment Technology multiplier and quality enhancer effects in evidence in best sites Class management is one source of failing to get the most out of technology Lack of effective learning environment at many sites is another failing Inadequate use of resources, lack of motivation to absorb change are the factors in the worst cases Monitoring remote sites and their facilitation requires logistics in excess of current efforts

Current preparedness Tamil CBFL deployed Hindi, Bengali and Marathi CBFL available but not fully tested Push and Pull versions experimented with Manual Development

Imminent directions  Speech recognition and synthesis to be used  Automation in converting scripts to CBT presentations  Enhancing the learning environment  Networking of remote sites Portal to be built

An Assessment of Effort For each language State Resource Centres have their material (3+1 primers) Scripts for teaching reading skills to be prepared from the material of these primers – 2 person months Dry runs to appreciate the dynamics of the lessons – 1 person month About lessons cover the primers Production of CBFL material 12 person months to produce the Macromedia Flash based CBTs 2 – 3 calendar months to experiment with and revise the material – 6 person month effort Can be done in 4-5 calendar months and 2 person year effort Needs professional voices for good quality CBTs – is expensive 5-6 technical people over 5-6 months

The road ahead Languages The Hindi Belt –Hindi, Marathi, Gujarati, Rajasthani The Eastern Region –Bengali, Oriya, Assamese The Southern Region –Tamil, (Telugu, Kannada), Malyalam The Northern Region –Punjabi, Haryanvi, Urdu? Computers 2 Million computers over 5 years inclusive of replacements –Pentium 1 and up, MB, 3-10GB HDD, Multimedia, CD, networking is optional –UPS, SpikeGuard, … Logistics in sourcing, checking, packaging, shipping, customs, unpacking, forwarding, installing, maintaining, retiring, disposing safely

The road ahead Government State Resource Centres State Literacy Mission Secretariat IT Secretary Secretary for Education District Collectors Municipal Commissioners Directors of Literacy Programmes Continuing Education Centres Preraks Collaborators NGOs Rotarians, Lions Club Ramakrishna Mission, Chinmaya Mission, Sathya Sai Baba Trusts, … Political Parties Education institutions Corporate Bodies Chambers of Commerce Industry associations

The road ahead We are moving beyond the proving stage It is a national problem and has to be viewed as a national project There is a need for an umbrella organization that has the goodwill to provide the networking and the glue to hold it together There is a need for seeding the financing needed to engage in the battle against this scourge

Thank You