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Tamil Nadu

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Children in Tamil Nadu have an unusually difficult time learning. It’s largely because the Tamil language has an alphabet with 247 syllables. As a result, Pratham is especially challenged in this state.
 
Here we teach the basics and maintain a strict focus on results. While over 99% of 6-14 year-olds go to school, the children here really need help. 60% of 3rd graders can’t read simple words in Tamil. Only 50% of 2nd graders can recognize numbers greater than ten 60% of 5th graders can’t even do simple subtraction Pratham’s resources here are limited so we collaborate closely with two primary NGOs, Aid India and Vidyarambam, as well as an assortment of others. We benefit from their local knowledge and we share best practices that benefit them in their work. Working together we provide a robust Read India campaign and an assortment of other programs:

Read India

In many villages we’ve formed informal partnerships have been formed with school principals, to allow Read India classes to take place in government schools to help students attain higher learning levels. Tamil Nadu’s complex language requires Aid India’s commitment, encouraging a focus on learning level attainment in the classroom. Aid India’s learning centers also have a special focus on science, with experiments that encourage young children to think scientifically about the world around them.

Eureka Superkidz Centers

Aid India runs these learning centers which are similar to Read India’s after school classes in 92 of the 639 BEP villages covered in Tamil Nadu. Superkidz Centers run intensively in small communities. They use paid volunteers and provide extra workbooks. AID India trains volunteers in proven accelerated learning methods. They provide materials and monitor learning outcomes closely to ensure real progress.

Pratham-Aid India

With several years of material development and proven innovation, Pratham-Aid India has become a resource to several NGOs in Chennai and across Tamil Nadu. In both subsidized and paying partnerships, Aid India has trained and supported 11 other education-sector NGOs and two tuition centers, providing less-experienced organizations the tools to make their work more effective—indirectly reaching over 40,000 additional children.

Early Childhood Education

Pratham also works in affiliation with Vidyarambam in Tamil Nadu, an NGO focused on early childhood education in rural contexts. Vidyarambam runs learning centers across Tamil Nadu, emphasizing pre-school literacy but also providing learning support classes for primary school students in math, reading, and English.