Kadam- Getting children back to school

In India, the issue of Out of School Children is a major challenge and complex social problem. Despite education being the fundamental right for 6-14 years children, the shocking number of millions of out-of-school children is a harsh reality. These include children who have never been to school and those who have dropped out of primary school's early classes. When the children have enrolled in school again, in age-appropriate classes, they exhibit learning gaps, which impedes their learning and undermines their confidence. As schools begin to limp back after the prolonged disruption of the Covid-19 pandemic, India’s flagship national education survey has captured an unprecedented jump in government school students. A growing dependency on private tuition classes — and a stark digital divide have been seen, which carries the risk of severely affecting the learning abilities of primary grade students. Various surveys have highlighted the problem of children being unable to catch up as one of the biggest challenges in learning.

Learning is a progressive and continuous process, leading from one concept to the next. It is crucial to address the learning gaps of students and this also needs the immediate attention of the teacher. The more time is lost, the more difficult it becomes to undertake the task. Hence the need for Special Training Centres (STCs), which help such children bridge their learning gaps and catch up with other children at their grade level. HPPI's Kadam Programme provide complete mainstreaming support to children through an accelerated curriculum in the special training centres. A robust system of accelerated learning provides a strong foundational understanding of basic concepts, which is imperative to stop children from dropping out of the education system.

The programme aims to improve children’s subject skills and knowledge, specifically in mathematics, environmental science, Hindi, and English. It blends formal learning and skill-based experiences to engage students effectively. It enhances the formal learning skills of students. It is administered as a package for learning at the individual pace and level of students in the formal education system.

HPPI aims to ensure that all OOSC can bridge their learning gap to join regular schools and learn with other children. HPPI is on a mission to reach a minimum of 2 million children in-school and out-of-school to bring them to age-appropriate learning levels, of which at least half are girl children over the next five years. This includes engagement of state authorities and teachers to adopt methodologies and practices that will enable children to learn how to learn with responsibility and to construct knowledge in a natural progression (being a partner with the child to build knowledge rather than being just a provider of knowledge), in a way that is truly in line with the spirit and idea of the National Curriculum Framework.

Become a catalyst in building child's confidence to enjoy learning and being a part of the formal education system by supporting in whatever ways you can.