TARA Akshar+: Providing functional literacy solutions to empower lives

Empowering women by providing them with the power of literacy through innovative learning techniques.

The Problem

Adult literacy rates in India are way higher than the global average. India is home to a huge 360 million adults, 180 million of these adults being women. With numbers rising with each passing year, the TARA Akshar+ initiative is a gradual step in the direction of eradicating adult illiteracy from India. Adult illiterate women in the rural interiors of the country form the core target group of beneficiaries of the initiative. The rationale of targeting the illiterate women through the literacy initiative is rather obvious. Literacy and empowerment forms an important input in overall development of individuals enabling them to comprehend their social, political and cultural environment better and respond to it appropriately. It acts as a catalyst for social advancement ‘enhancing the returns on investment made’ in almost every aspect of development effort, be it population control, health, hygiene, and employment of weaker sections of society.

The Solution

The TARA Akshar+ Functional Literacy and Numeracy programme is an extremely successful method enabling illiterate people to read, write and do simple arithmetic. TARA Akshar+ uses advanced memory techniques, cutting-edge heuristics and computerized graphics to ensure the highest quality of learning by the students. A key element of successful literacy programmes is continuing education. In order to mitigate the impacts of recidivism and promote empowerment, and increase the learning ability of the neo-literates, TARA Akshar+ has integrated the concept of ‘Gyan Chaupali’, a post-literacy learning club, in every village where TARA Akshar+ is functional. Main activities under Gyan Chaupali include the delivery of health awareness and financial literacy modules to learners to enhance their skills and livelihood options. It also includes sustaining the literacy levels of the neo-literates using interactive games, movies etc. These activities stress on the application part of literacy in the learners' lives.

Stage of Development

Early Stage
Established Prototype
Scaling
Other

Organization to Receive Funds

Society for Development Alternatives (DA) - The world's first social enterprise dedicated to sustainable development, is a research and action organisation striving to deliver socially equitable, environmentally sound and economically scalable development outcomes. DA’s green technology innovations for habitat, water, energy and waste management, which deliver basic needs and generate sustainable livelihoods, have reduced poverty and rejuvenated natural ecosystems in the most backward regions of India. DA’s Mission is to help eliminate poverty and regenerate the environmental resource base through methods that are highly scalable. Its activities broadly cover three primary areas that underlie any sustainable development process: the design...