Celebrating Independence through Equal Access to Education
At Rocket Learning, we firmly believe that a nation thrives when everyone has equal access to fundamental rights, particularly early childhood education. Our model ensures that this crucial access to high-quality learning is extended to all children, transcending backgrounds and circumstances.
But while children benefit significantly from a solid foundation, leading to improved employability, financial independence, and overall well-being, our impact goes beyond the classroom. Women, especially Anganwadi workers, achieve newfound self-reliance as they navigate our program.
This Independence Day, we take a moment to honour these strong and independent women workers who stand as beacons of hope in under-resourced communities where access to early childhood education remains limited.
"We didn't have access to all of this training before," shared Rajkumari Sharma, an Anganwadi worker with 39 years of experience in Tonk, Rajasthan. "Now we have all of this exposure and experience. I have seen a lot of changes in myself. At first, I was unsure, but now I feel I have an identity in my village. Everyone knows me now and calls me 'ma'am.' They also seek my advice," she added.
This transformation, as seen in Rajkumari's journey, is a shared experience among Anganwadi workers nationwide. Our innovative approach has empowered them with vital skills, knowledge, and recognition, elevating their societal status. These women have taken control of their destinies by embracing digital proficiency and upskilling, opening doors to personal and professional growth.
Anjali Pathak, Lady Supervisor of Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS), noted, "I have seen a lot of changes in Anganwadi workers. They didn't have as much knowledge as they have now. If you see them now, they are working on WhatsApp, learning, conducting classes, and surveys."
The newfound self-reliance of Anganwadi workers contributes to their own lives and the overall resilience and progress of their communities and society.
"I couldn't continue my education after fifth grade, but I learn everything you send on the phone and then teach the kids. Earlier, we spent a lot of time recording, reporting, and manually writing everything out. Since it has shifted to the phone, everything is much quicker," shared Sushila Devi.
Sushila's journey exemplifies a broader shift in community perception. "When I started this work, people used to make fun of us and call us porridge or snack distributors. Now, I see parents come to drop their children off at the Anganwadis, inquiring about their children's progress. They respect my work and say, 'Good morning, teacher.'"
As we celebrate Independence Day, let us celebrate our collective progress towards educational equity. Together, we forge a future where every citizen, regardless of gender or background, can flourish, contributing to the advancement of our remarkable nation.
Policy Updates
We are continuing our work with the National Institute for Public Cooperation and Child Development (NIPCCD) to design and deliver a three-day training module for Anganwadi Workers and a training cascade model implemented through the 5 NIPCCD Regional Centres.
As part of our work, we train the supervisory cadres to become Master Trainers in Early Childhood Education through engaging activity-based pedagogy, AV materials, and tech-enabled monitoring. In just one month, we have conducted over ten trainings in six states and helped train over 300 State-Level Master Trainers.
Rocket Learning Around the Nation
We are ecstatic to announce our partnership with Meghalaya, the first north-eastern state on Rocket Learning's impact map, and work with their motivated Integrated Child Development Services team to support its early childhood mission. We are assisting them with developing content for their early childhood education curriculum and training supervisors and Anganwadi workers to become empowered educators, keeping local language and culture in mind.
We have also expanded to a fourth district in Rajasthan, Sirohi, and launched our teacher model in three districts in Maharashtra: Ratnagiri, Yawatmal and Nadurbar.
Meet Ankita K. , former Product Lead at Rocket Learning. She led the product team to build and scale learning products nationwide for 3-6-year-old kids and their teachers. Before joining us, she was a Senior Business Analyst at McKinsey & Company, but she always knew she belonged in the social impact sector. Her contributions to Rocket Learning and India's early childhood education sector are commendable.
We met with her last week as she was packing to travel to California, where she will attend 美国斯坦福大学 and learn more about using technology to address social issues.
Hear her talk about her journey at Rocket Learning, building a product loved by over 1.8 million users, and how she decided to apply to Stanford. Join us in wishing her the best! ?
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Funder Spotlight
We are overjoyed to spotlight 亚马逊 India, one of our key funders whose steadfast support has been instrumental in our journey to deliver innovative educational programs that are engaging and relevant to the needs of India's children.
Amazon India's vision of transforming lives and communities is a powerful force for good, and their partnership inspires us in our shared goal of enhancing education for millions of children in our country. Through their generous support, we have developed digital communities, enabling us to scale our impact to 1.8 million children across the nation and reach more underserved communities.
Thank you, Amazon India, for being a driving force behind our mission, incredible partners, and enabling millions of children across the country to dream.
Browse Through Our Impact Stories
We launched Anganwadi training workshops in all 38 Anganwadis in Amethi, Uttar Pradesh.
By training daycare workers, we are equipping them with the skills they need to become effective preschool educators and provide quality education to the children in their communities.
While most Anganwadi workers are?graduates , they lack any formal?training ?to teach young children.
Through our hybrid training model, we train them across all ECE domains, including?cognitive ?stimulation,?physical ?development and?growth , and foundational numeracy and literacy skills.?
By?upskilling , Anganwadi workers become more?confident ?in their ability to teach and develop more?agency ?in their professional and personal lives. Our content and teaching strategies focus on evidence-based childhood development approaches and state-certified learning curriculums.
Many parents couldn't afford extra classes during the pandemic. While most?private schools ?shifted to?Zoom , socio-economically disadvantaged children lacked?unlimited data ?and sophisticated internet devices.
Our model gained popularity!
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We believe collaboration between the government and private organizations is critical to achieving quality education for all young learners. Check out our website to read the full post and learn more about our mission to bridge the education gap in India.
In our vision for India@100, Anganwadi centers transform into vibrant learning spaces, closing literacy gaps and ensuring universal access.