Lok Sabha Question No. 2176 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2024-08-05
Subject: Strength Enhancing Literacy Skills in Children
Ministry: EDUCATION
Asked by: Shri Ram Shiromani Verma

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF EDUCATION DEPARTMENT OF SCHOOL EDUCATION & LITERACY

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO 2176

ANSWERED ON 05/08/2024

## Strength Enhancing Literacy Skills in Children

†2176 Shri Ram Shiromani Verma:

Will the Minister of Education be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Government proposes to launch any scheme to strengthen and modernize Primary Education for enhancing literacy skills in children;
- (b) if so, the details thereof along with the objectives of the scheme; and
- (c) the policies formulated/being formulated by the Government in this regard, and the benefits thereof?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION (SHRI JAYANT CHAUDHARY)

(a)  to  (c)  :  The  Department  of  School  Education  and  Literacy  (DoSE&L)  is  implementing  an integrated centrally sponsored scheme for School Education- Samagra Shiksha since 2018-19. The scheme of Samagra Shiksha has been aligned with National Education Policy, 2020 with focus on improving  the  quality  of  education  through  various  measures  such  as  introduction  of  new pedagogical  and  curricular  structure,  Early  Childhood  Care  and  Education  and  Foundational Literacy and Numeracy, among others.

A  National Mission called 'National Initiative for Proficiency in Reading with Understanding and Numeracy (NIPUN Bharat)'  has been launched on 5th July, 2021 for ensuring that every child in the country attains foundational literacy and numeracy by the end of Grade 2. This  Mission  has  been  set  up  under  the  aegis  of  the  centrally  sponsored  scheme  of  Samagra Shiksha- an integrated scheme for School Education.  Under Samagra Shiksha, all 36 States/Union Territories are implementing NIPUN-Bharat Mission.

The  National  Education  Policy  (NEP  2020)  emphasizes  on  developing  the  relevant concepts and attaining requisite competencies to facilitate optimal learning when children start schooling. Keeping in focus the holistic development, a 3 Months Play Based 'School Preparation Module and Guidelines' for Grade I named 'Vidya Pravesh' was launched on 29 th July, 2021.The goal of Vidya Pravesh programme is to promote school preparedness in all children coming to

Grade- I from diverse backgrounds, to ensure a smooth transition of children to Grade-I, to provide play based, age and developmentally appropriate learning experiences in a joyful and stimulating environment  leading  to  holistic  development.  The  12-week  module  contains  developmentally appropriate instructions for the children entering Grade 1 to bolster a child's pre-literacy, prenumeracy,  cognitive and social skills. All States/UTs are  implementing  Vidya  Pravesh programme.

To  improve  the  Learning  Outcomes  in  Foundational  Stage,  the  National Curricular Framework for Foundational Stage (NCF-FS) was released on 20th October, 2022 providing a structure  for  the  syllabus,  Training  of  Teachers,  Learning  Teaching  Material  (LTM),  etc. Accordingly, Jadui Pitara for Balvatika ( 3 years of preschool) and Books for Grade 1 & 2 have been provided by NCERT for use by States/UTs.

JaaduiPitara -a Collection of learning- teaching material for 3 to 6 years age group has been developed and launched on 20 th February, 2023. The JaaduiPitara is a box having 53 Learning Teaching Materials (LTM) for the foundational stage. It has toys, games, puzzles. puppets, posters, flashcards, story cards, play book set for students, and handbooks for teachers.

The e-JaaduiPitara (e-JP) was launched on 10 th February 2024. The e-JP is an app and website  with  integration  of  the  latest  technology  with  play-based  pedagogy  and  a  way  to disseminate the learning of JaaduiPitara and transcend it beyond the four walls of the classroom.

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