Latest news with #FoundationalLiteracyandNumeracy
The Hindu
11-06-2025
- General
- The Hindu
Schools to reopen today; pre-primary to be introduced in 210 schools in State
Ending a 49-day vacation, schools in Telangana are all set to reopen for Classes 1 to 10 for the academic year 2025-26 on Thursday. For the first time, the State government has also decided to deliver 'early childhood care and education' and run pre-primary sections. The initiative is under Samagra Shiksha, the integrated scheme for school education, and the aim is to ensure the preschoolers are ready for Class 1 in the next academic year. Pre-primary will be launched in the districts of Hanumakonda, Jagtial, Jayashankar Bhupalapally, Kamareddy, Karimnagar, Kumuram Bheem Asifabad, Mancherial, Mulugu, Nirmal, Nizamabad, Peddapalli, Siddipet and Warangal. The first day at school, officials in the Education department and District Collectors across the State said, will be a celebratory one focused on welcoming the students back. Principals and teachers have already been instructed to decorate the schools, and install entrance arches with flowers and banners. The major task on the first day, however, is the distribution of school uniforms and textbooks and notebooks. School heads are also to monitor enrollment of students, which was keenly campaigned for during the week. The new academic year is also a fresh start for 1.12 lakh teachers across the State who have undergone five-day capacity building workshops, and senior school officials who have attended residential programmes. The focus has been on student learning assessment: Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN) modules for Classes 1-5 and Learning Improvement Programme (LIP) – for Classes 6 to 9. The Education department will also partner with AXL EkStep Foundation for 5,651 schools to improve FLN. In a first, the School Education Department, learning from past year's experiences, has also taken up training sessions for cooks and sanitation workers to ensure food safety and overall school hygiene. As per the 2025-26 school academic calendar, schools for Classes 1 to 10 will have 230 working days. The first summative assessment will be conducted from October 24 to 31, the second summative assessment for Classes till 9th is scheduled April 10 to 18.
New Indian Express
07-06-2025
- Science
- New Indian Express
HRD Minister Lokesh examines education kits for pupils in Andhra Pradesh
VIJAYAWADA: HRD and IT Minister Nara Lokesh on Friday examined the educational kits being prepared for distribution to government schools for the upcoming academic year. The inspection took place at his Undavalli residence, where officials presented various kits that will be supplied to students. A key highlight of the review was the inspection of STEM lab kits, which will be distributed to 222 PM Shri schools. Each STEM kit contains 335 items, specially designed to be research-based and concept-oriented. Officials said these kits aim to enhance students' practical knowledge and skills in science, technology, engineering, and Mathematics. Lokesh also examined a range of library books curated for primary, upper primary, and secondary schools. He thoroughly reviewed the Jaadui Pitara kit and other print-rich and handmade FLN (Foundational Literacy and Numeracy) materials tailored for Grade 1 and 2 students. He interacted with the staff and enquired about the design, content, and distribution logistics of these educational tools.
The Hindu
03-06-2025
- General
- The Hindu
In Telangana, teacher training is a continuous, classroom-centered process
'A good teacher builds a better harvest than a good monsoon,' goes an old saying in Telangana's villages. Students thrive not just from resources or policy, but from skilled, supported, and trusted teachers and decades of research across the globe confirm this. Yet, despite this clear connection, effective teacher training has remained an elusive goal in India's education system. In recent years, many States have expanded their teacher training efforts. Yet, the challenge has remained: how to move beyond one-off workshops to truly empower teachers in classrooms. Telangana set out to answer that question — by reimagining teacher development not as an event, but as a continuous, classroom-centered process. Its experience offers important insights for the rest of the country. Teacher training a missed opportunity A large study by the Institute for Multi-sensory Education found that high-quality teacher development can boost student achievement by 21 percentage points. Another meta-analysis across 60 studies showed that structured coaching raised instructional quality by 20 percentage points, and student scores by 7–8 points—especially in critical early literacy skills. Yet, India's teacher training story has often been a litany of missed opportunities. A 2016 NCERT review found that most in-service trainings were one-off lectures, unconnected to teachers' real struggles. Needs assessments were sporadic, follow-up was rare, and cascade models — designed to spread training — often diluted quality by the time help reached classrooms. Telangana was no exception. Over almost a decade, despite running large-scale training sessions, learning levels remained stubbornly low with a declining trend. While the textbooks were thoughtfully designed, teachers struggled to bring them to life in the classroom, having never been trained to transact them in their true spirit—often rushing through content without knowing if real learning was taking place. It was clear: training teachers for a day wasn't enough. They needed to be equipped, supported, and trusted every day. In 2022, Telangana turned the mirror inward and asked its teachers a simple but powerful question: 'What do you need?' Their answers were poignant — and surprisingly simple. 'We have the textbooks and materials — we just don't know if we're using them the right way to actually help children learn.' The response led to a quiet revolution. A revamped training program First, new easy-to-use Teacher Handbooks in Telugu, Urdu, English, and Mathematics were launched to guide lesson delivery and make textbooks transactions easier. Paired with Student Workbooks aligned to Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN) goals, this shift moved the system from rote curriculum coverage to competency-based learning, giving teachers a way to monitor student progress every day. Next, Telangana redesigned how it trained its teachers. In 2023, building on this momentum, over 48,000 primary teachers participated in a revamped training program. For the first time, the focus was not on abstract theory but on real challenges. Teachers were encouraged to bring their handbooks into the training hall and refer to them throughout. Mandal-level trainers underwent in-depth orientations and received structured trainer kits with presentations, demonstration videos, and activities — shifting the format from lecture to dialogue. For instance, instead of simply being told how to 'teach place value,' trainers walked teachers through an actual classroom demonstration: using small sticks bundled in tens to make the concept tangible for young children. Teachers practiced these techniques themselves, received feedback, and were equipped to replicate them in their own classrooms. But the most radical change came after the workshops ended. Continuous professional development Instead of leaving teachers to fend for themselves, Telangana built a support system in the field. Middle management officials including the Mandal Educational Officers and the Complex Head Masters, visited classrooms, observed lessons, offered feedback, and nudged teachers toward excellence. Over one lakh classroom observations were conducted — not to police teachers, but to support them. Despite slight hiccups in 2024 — most rightly due to long-pending systemic reforms such as teacher transfers and promotions — the State stayed the course. These reforms, while temporarily slowing down classroom support and momentum, were critical for restoring fairness and morale in the system. And finally, in 2025, Telangana took the entire teacher development effort to the next level. For the first time in the past decade, a five-day, statewide training was held during the summer holidays — ensuring teachers have uninterrupted time to engage deeply, reflect, and prepare before the academic year began. The training design was rooted in evidence drawn from a large-scale sample study conducted by the SCERT in March 2025. The data revealed specific areas where students struggled and where teachers felt stuck. Every session was aligned with these findings and mirrored real classroom situations, so that teachers could connect, practice, and apply. In effect, the classroom walked into the training hall — and that made all the difference. More importantly, every session was tied to real classroom challenges. Technology was seamlessly woven into the entire process. Pre- and post-assessments tracked what was working — and what wasn't, attendance was digitally tracked. Teachers were awarded digital completion certificates, acknowledging their effort and commitment. This structured and tech-enabled approach ensured accountability while also respecting teachers as professionals. Today, around 78% of teachers show improvement in post-training assessments. Most importantly, teachers find themselves more confident to transact a lesson which would further have an impact on the student learning outcomes. To complement these efforts, Telangana has been working on a blended Continuous Professional Development (CPD) platform to empower teachers to continue their learning journeys, choosing courses based on their needs — a quiet nod to respecting teachers as professionals, not passive recipients. (Dr. IV Subba Rao is a retired IAS Officer and Senior Advisor, Central Square Foundation. Suresh Ghattamaneni is an Associate Director at Central Square Foundation)
Hans India
02-06-2025
- General
- Hans India
Training held for 1.12L teachers across State
Hyderabad: In a bid to enhance educational quality and empower educators, around 1,12,882 teachers were trained by the Education Department, Telangana. The initiative covered a total of 25,356 government, local body, TREIS, Model Schools, KGBVs, and URS institutions. To ensure optimal participation and coverage, the training was organised in three phases in a cascade mode, each spanning five days. A total of 1,12,882 teachers and Headmasters out of 1,16,084 completed the training. According to officials, the training programme was spearheaded by 5,605 resource persons and focused on key areas such as: Enhancing student learning outcomes- Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN) for primary classes (1-5) and Learning Improvement Program (LIP) for secondary classes (6-9) innovative teaching-learning methodologies, assessment practices, digital literacy (AI, ICT, IFPs) departmental initiatives, creating a drug-free school environment and adolescent safety and empowerment.
The Hindu
01-06-2025
- General
- The Hindu
Over 1.12 lakh teachers trained ahead of new academic year in State
The Department of School Education under its teacher training programme has completed training for teachers and headmasters covering 25,356 various government, local body, urban residential and model schools ahead of the beginning of the 2025-26 academic year. The programme was conducted in three five-day spells from May 13 to 31. Over 5,600 trainers of teachers led the sessions for 1,12,882 teachers. A total of 1,165 teachers who would retire in July 2025 were exempted from the training, and another 3,202 teachers were availing various leaves and they would be trained in the mop-up programme. In all, about 97.24% of the teachers completed the training modules. According to Director, School Education, E.V. Narasimha Reddy, trainings were organised strategically — high school teachers at the district level and primary school teachers were trained at the mandal level. Their daily attendance was tracked with the Telangana School Education mobile app. The pre- and post-training tests for the teachers were conducted using the mobile application, which also generated individual training certificates. The training programme was essential and was aimed at improving Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN) for primary classes and Learning Improvement Program (LIP) for secondary classes. The five-day modules familiarised and tested the teachers on innovative teaching-learning methodologies, digital literacy and tools such as Artificial Intelligence, Information Communication Technology and IFPs, departmental initiatives, creating drug-free school environment, adolescent safety and empowerment, and assessment practices.
