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A N N U A L R E P O RT 2 0 1 6 - 1 7
SIMPLEEDUCATIONFOUNDATION
#KeepingitSimple
INDEX
1-2A YEAR OF FIRSTS
3- 4PUSHING FORSYSTEMICCHANGE
5-12PROJECTS
13-16IMPACT
& REACH
23-24PARTNERS &COLLABORATORS
25-26LOOKING AHEAD
17-18LEADERSHIP IN CLASSROOMS
19-20TESTIMONIALS
21-22FINANCIALS
#KeepingitSimple
A YEAR OF FIRSTS
There’s something extraordinary about first days. 2016 has been the year of many firsts for Simple Education Foundation. This was the year we went into full operational mode, with two big projects that enabled us to forge our first ties with the teachers and students of Jammu & Kashmir and Uttarakhand.
We started out in 2014, in a modest room in Tughlakabad Extension in Delhi, initially as a remedial learning center for children in that community. Flash-forward to 2016, we evolved our learning center into a ‘design thinking’ space for our students. We christened it as ‘Prayogshala’, our first learning lab for building leadership skills amongst our students. This was the first of many leaps of faith we took in the past year.
Be it the energy and enthusiasm of our Taleem teachers at our first training workshop in Kashmir, or the love and respect shown by our students in Gular village on our first day of Paathshala, or the first day of School Network with our Grade 1 students delighted to learn new activities with their new ‘Didi’ and ‘Bhaiya’. All these first days, reinforced the spirit of teamwork, where everyone came together seamlessly and created magic with their sense of doing and being.
We believe that it is these magical first moments that have really brought us together as a stronger collective to accomplish our mission, as we continue to build our community of teachers, students, parents, principals, educators and dreamers alike.
This Annual Report is also the first of many to come. This report is our endeavour to document all our experiences from the past year – our highs and lows, achievements and reflections, impact and scale, partners and mentors.
In 2017, we will continue to strive for excellence within the organization as well as with our external stakeholders. And through our work on the ground, we will also keep pushing for a systemic change within our government schools, by empowering our teachers and students with skills, that make them the real changemakers of the transformation we need in our education system. Gratitude.
The SEF Family
11 2
These are some of the core future skills we embed in our learning and teaching models, as we work towards building a new generation of leaders within our schools and classrooms. 1. Problem Solving2. Critical Thinking3. Reflection4. Creativity5. Self Awareness 6. Collaboration7. Negotiation8. Communication
PUSHING FOR SYSTEMIC CHANGE
Our VISION is to provide an education to all our children that will prepare them to navigate through a dynamic and connected 21st century world. We want to do this in a way that is dramatically more effective than the way it is done currently.
Our MISSION is to build pathways that offer every child the opportunity to learn equally, regardless of their social and economic backgrounds. We do this by working to transform teaching and learning processes within government schools, across rural and urban landscapes.
We believe that if we want to equip our students with future skills, then we must first build those skills amongst our teachers and school leaders. Our ultimate goal is to trigger systemic transformation, and we want this to be a push that comes from the base of the pyramid. We believe in empowering those who’re directly impacted by the redundancy in the education system, and build the change they wish to see within the system.
All our projects are rooted in our theory of change and are designed to push for systemic change. Currently, through our projects on the ground, our team works with teachers and students across a diverse set of ecosystems in the country. In the short term, our models focus on improving the quality of teaching and learning in the public education space. We work with students directly towards building student leadership demonstrated in their classrooms, schools and communities. We also work with teachers towards building their knowledge, skills and mindsets that will empower them to become instructional leaders.
In the long term, we use our knowledge and experience of the educational realities from these diverse ecosystems, to work towards a sustainable and community owned educational reform across the country. We do this by partnering with educators, social entrepreneurs, government authorities, communities and other key stakeholders. We start by understanding the current reality first and then go on to forge a tangible hypothesis to tackle the educational inequity in that given region. Our various projects are based on different execution models and settings. We believe these diverse experiences will considerably deepen our understanding of educational inequity, and help us build reform in different parts of the country.
THEORY OF CHANGE
43
ENGAGEto understand and experience
educational challenges indiverse ecosystems
LEARNfrom our engagement to create
robust models that can be adapted to positively impact teaching and
learning in similar ecosystems
GROWto build a sustainable community
led education reform across regions through collaboration
and partnerships
A YEAR OF FIRSTS
There’s something extraordinary about first days. 2016 has been the year of many firsts for Simple Education Foundation. This was the year we went into full operational mode, with two big projects that enabled us to forge our first ties with the teachers and students of Jammu & Kashmir and Uttarakhand.
We started out in 2014, in a modest room in Tughlakabad Extension in Delhi, initially as a remedial learning center for children in that community. Flash-forward to 2016, we evolved our learning center into a ‘design thinking’ space for our students. We christened it as ‘Prayogshala’, our first learning lab for building leadership skills amongst our students. This was the first of many leaps of faith we took in the past year.
PRAYOGSHALA (2015)
In 2014, our co-founder Rahul started Prayogshala in a tiny home in the heart of Tughlakabad Extension, New Delhi. It started off as a remedial center for a group of 60 students who were taught by Rahul back when he was a Teach For India Fellow.
The vision for this center evolved with time, where the focus moved to building analytical and critical thinking skills amongst the students by incubating a learning lab. The core philosophy here is to make learning more relevant. Students will understand the true purpose of learning and this will happen not because a teacher will tell them this, but because they will understand and appreciate the value of the skills they learn.
The endeavour is to create a space inside the community where students immerse themselves in projects through which they acquire problem-solving skills that they will need to excel in their classrooms and beyond. The projects/assignments are designed to integrate skills and knowledge from different subject areas, and build on their independent learning abilities. We decided to initially work with a smaller set of students, in order to deepen our understanding of this project-based learning model, and embed leadership skills in the learning process. In early 2015, students were asked to take an assessment to gauge their various competencies. Based on the results, currently we have 20 students who are part of this learning lab model, while the rest continue to be supported through the remedial intervention model at the center.
OUR PROJECTS
5 6
8
TALEEM (2016)
In May 2016, we partnered with the Directorate of School Education, Kashmir region (DSEK) to coach and empower select government school teachers and Head Masters with skills and mindsets that set them on a path of transformation.
In it’s pilot phase, the program was designed to support 10 schools in Srinagar and Bandipore district. The core philosophy of the program was to strengthen instructional and school leadership and transform schools into centers of learning excellence. The model was designed to support through workshops and one-on-one coaching. During our workshop and coaching sessions, we focused on the power of adapting a positive mindset as instructional leaders, pedagogy tools that can tackle learning differentiation and enable them to identify & take ownership of their own growth as teachers & school leaders.
In September 2016, Kashmir witnessed continuous violence that escalated to a two month long curfew in most parts of the state. Amidst the turmoil, our access and training with our Taleem teachers was also impacted. However, we were determined to continue our work with the government teachers, and collaborated with Sarva Siksha Abhiyaan (SSA), to design & implement teacher training modules for master trainers across the state. This unique opportunity gave us valuable insights to the existing teacher development programs run by SSA, and the scope for transformation and modification for deeper impact. These workshops with SSA gave us a chance to build a model that can be scaled within the existing system. We continue to work with the government trainers across the state, to constantly evolve and refresh these training modules beyond the workshop sessions, and extend our support to monitoring and implementation on the ground. These trainers in turn impact nearly 80,000 teachers across Jammu & Kashmir. In 2017, we will continue to engage with SSA as their primary implementation partner for government teacher training and development across the state.
In July 2016, we started Paathshala, our ‘One School-One Village’ project in rural Uttarakhand. Located in the hills of Tehri Garhwal, we’re currently working in a Hindi medium government high school in the tiny hamlet of Gular. This initiative is a CSR partnership with Forest Essentials Pvt. Ltd, who run a manufacturing unit in that region for over 20 years now.
The core philosophy is to strengthen academic learning in this rural school community, and give them the opportunities and exposure that puts them on a path of student leadership. The focus is also to engage and empower local community members to be more involved and responsible for the quality of the school.
In July 2016, we conducted a
baseline assessment with a focus on English & Math literacy, and found the literacy levels to be below grade level. Keeping in mind the needs of the entire school, we designed a multi-tier intervention strategy – work directly inside classrooms with the students, strengthen instructional skills of the teachers, and build meaningful engagement opportunities between the community and the school, to increase their ownership in it’s transformation.
In our first year, we work directly inside the classroom with students from 6-8th grades. After school hours, our team runs a remedial learning center within the school, which supports close to 100 students. Our team lives in the village, and this gives us incredible access to the community to extend our work and impact beyond the school walls. Our objective is also to understand the role and the power of the local community in becoming change agents for a village school. In 2017, we will be working with close to 200 students across 6-9th grade in this school, and focus on leveraging leadership skills amongst the students and empower them to design and lead the pilot initiatives for community engagement.
PAATHSHALA (2016)9 10
baseline assessment with a focus on English & Math literacy, and found the literacy levels to be below grade level. Keeping in mind the needs of the entire school, we designed a multi-tier intervention strategy – work directly inside classrooms with the students, strengthen instructional skills of the teachers, and build meaningful engagement opportunities between the community and the school, to increase their ownership in it’s transformation.
In our first year, we work directly inside the classroom with students from 6-8th grades. After school hours, our team runs a remedial learning center within the school, which supports close to 100 students. Our team lives in the village, and this gives us incredible access to the community to extend our work and impact beyond the school walls. Our objective is also to understand the role and the power of the local community in becoming change agents for a village school. In 2017, we will be working with close to 200 students across 6-9th grade in this school, and focus on leveraging leadership skills amongst the students and empower them to design and lead the pilot initiatives for community engagement.
9
In April 2017, we kicked off our first school transformation project in Delhi. This is our first big opportunity to impact and transform a government primary school in an urban community. This initiative is in collaborative partnership with Education Alliance, a non-profit organization that works closely with the South Delhi Municipal Corporation on their ‘School Quality Enhancement Program’ (SQEP).
SQEP is a unique adaptation of the US based charter school system, which aims to build capacity and quality of government run schools, by partnering with private organizations working in the education space. Our role is to transform the overall school culture, strengthen teaching and learning processes, innovate curriculum and facilitate the transition of the school into the English medium of instruction.
In our first year, we have taken over two grades (Nursery & Grade 1) in this school, directly impacting close to 75 children. The core philosophy of this program is to bridge the socio-economic gap and ensure that all children have access to a quality education comparable to those available to children from higher income schools at no cost.
SEF has a team of 4 people working alongside the government staff in the school. This includes a School Leader, two Classroom Teachers and an Administrative and Community Outreach Associate. This is a unique opportunity for us to work directly within the government system for transformational change. Moving forward, we will take over an additional classroom each year as part of our intervention model and by 2020, we aim to transform the entire school as the first English medium government school for that community.
THE SCHOOL NETWORK (2017)
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PROJECT REACH
80,000 TEACHERS
600 STUDENTS
3 STATES
PROJECT IMPACT
Our models are designed to strengthen Instructional Leadership And Student Leadership in the diverse spaces that we work in. At SEF, impact is defined by the growth we achieve in these two focus areas of our work, and we evaluate our progression, measuring short-term goals to define our long term outcomes.
At the end of 2016, in our first Impact Evaluation conducted across our different projects, in a span of 8 months or less, we have seen our students grow by an average of 1 year (grade level) in literacy and attain 75% mastery in grade level mathematical operations. We have also seen our teachers grow by 0.9 levels in each component of our Teacher Evaluation And Self Reflection Rubric in a time frame of 6 months.
13 14
Area of Focus
Objective
Classroom Instruction
Studentparticipation
and engagement
Lesson Plan
Checks forunderstanding
Assessment
Values
Expectation Reinforcement
Pre Int
1.15
1.4
1.45
1.4
1.3
1.05
2.75
1.75
Post Int
2.55
2.55
2.25
2.45
1.9
1.15
2.85
1.85
Growth
1.4
1.15
0.8
1.05
0.6
0.1
0.1
0.1
Taleem Impact
3
2.25
1.5
0.75
0
Objective
ClassroomInstruction
Studentparticipation
& engagementLesson
Plan
Checks forunderstanding
Assessment
Values
ExpectationReinforcement
Taleem Impact - Prioritized Skills
Total no.of kids
25
25
25
Level -0.5
5
11
2
Level0.2
2
3
5
Level0.5
12
11
10
Level1
6
0
8
Total no.of kids
75
Nogrowth
24%
Growth =0.7 yrs
13%
Growth =1 yrs
44%
Growth =1.5 yrs
19%
Literacy
Grade 6
Grade 7
Grade 8
LiteracyCumulative
Results
Total no.of kids
26
23
27
<50%
9
19
8
50-70%
8
2
12
>70%
9
2
7
Total no.of kids
76
<50%
47%
50-70%
29%
>70%
24%
Literacy
Grade 6
Grade 7
Grade 8
LiteracyCumulative
Results
Paathshala:In our first year at Paathshala, we measured our impact through baseline and end line assessments.
Taleem:In our first year at Taleem, we measured our teachers’ performance based on classroom teaching skills and leadership values they exhibit in their role.
16
19% 24%
13%44%
No growthGrowth = 0.7 yrsGrowth = 1 yrsGrowth = 1.5 yrs
<50%50-70%>70%
23.7%
47.4%
28.9%
Before InterventionAfter Intervention
BUILDING LEADERSHIP IN CLASSROOMS
Our belief is that if we’re able to empower our students and teachers with the right skills, then they will lead the way for school transformation. Over the past year, we’ve successfully created opportunities within our partner schools, to build these skills and give them a chance to demonstrate their ability and change the status quo. With Paathshala in Uttarakhand, it was by way of a student led showcase, where students organized and led an entire event, and exhibited their various talents. This was the first time an event like this was organized in the school.
15
18In Prayogshala, our students in Delhi displayed great rigour in selecting complex issues like gender violence and sanitation as their project topics. They designed their own surveys and interviewed members of the community to deepen their understanding about these social issues.
Our Taleem teachers in Kashmir pleasantly surprised us with early initiatives, as we saw a visible change in classroom management, lesson planning and teaching strategies, within two months of our intervention.
These are some of the core future skills we embed in our learning and teaching models, as we work towards building a new generation of leaders within our schools and classrooms. 1. Problem Solving2. Critical Thinking3. Reflection4. Creativity5. Self Awareness 6. Collaboration7. Negotiation8. Communication
17
"Simple Education Foundation, through its Taleem program, has done remarkable work in teacher training and introduced teachers of the school education department to new concepts and innovative techniques of teaching. The program has been a huge success and I am highly impressed with the way this team has worked in remote areas of Kashmir valley and continued their work in-spite of hostile weather and law and order disturbances." Dr. Shah Faesal(IAS) Managing Director, Power Development Corporation - Jammu & Kashmir Former Director, Directorate of School Education - Kashmir
“ SEF program has provided a practical base for SSA that has full access to reading & writing strategies, teaching approaches, management procedures and most importantly is a wealth of ideas as is evident from the feedback of teachers about the program. We find it will maximize success with the existing classroom resources.”
Rehana Quaser - Master Trainer, Srinagar District
“The Taleem program for us was a very good program. We enjoyed it very much. The students are very interested in the way we deliver the class, when we do the methods of ‘I do, we do, you do.’ I hope they learn well. ”
Sameer Ahmed – Teacher, Dangerpora Government School, Bandipore district
“ It’s been two years at the center and I feel I’ve changed a lot. I’ve learned new skills in the projects we do. I am learning to work in new teams, make presentations in front of other people. I’m more confident and can interview strangers and I’m not afraid to ask questions anymore.”
Shiksha – Student (7th Grade), Government Girls School, Tughlakabad Extension
Ï have become a more responsible person. I have also become a valuable person. I get to learn new things out of my comfort zone. My parents say I now work hard and not waste any time.”
Komal Shukla – Student (7th Grade), Government Girls School, Tughlakabad Extension
“I like to come to Paathshala because there are three teachers who teach us lovingly. Their behaviour is very good. I learn a lot here like speaking and writing English, and so many games.”
Chanda, Student – Student (7th Grade), Government Inter College and Higher Secondary School, Gular Village
“I have seen a lot of improvement in my children. The way they talk and behave has changed since they started studying at Paathshala. They learn new things each day and tell us about it. The way the teachers teach here at Paathshala is very good, and according to me they are number one. I have learnt so much from them.”
Tek Singh – Parent, Gular Village
TESTIMONIALS
19 20
“The work that is being done by SEF is progressive and motivational. I have seen a lot of growth in the students. They are really keen and interested to study at Paathshala. Personally, it has been a positive experience. I see the teachers transforming their weaknesses into strengths which really motivates me.”
Ritu Uniyal - Science Teacher, Government Inter College and Higher Secondary School, Gular Village
“I got new exposure at the center and learn how to write reports, use the laptop to make our presentations. My way of interacting with other people has changed. I’m more respectful now.”
Tanu – Student (7th Grade), Government Girls School, Tughlakabad Extension
“The Taleem program for us was a very good program. We enjoyed it very much. The students are very interested in the way we deliver the class, when we do the methods of ‘I do, we do, you do.’ I hope they learn well. ”
Sameer Ahmed – Teacher, Dangerpora Government School, Bandipore district
“ It’s been two years at the center and I feel I’ve changed a lot. I’ve learned new skills in the projects we do. I am learning to work in new teams, make presentations in front of other people. I’m more confident and can interview strangers and I’m not afraid to ask questions anymore.”
Shiksha – Student (7th Grade), Government Girls School, Tughlakabad Extension
“I like to come to Paathshala because there are three teachers who teach us lovingly. Their behaviour is very good. I learn a lot here like speaking and writing English, and so many games.”
Chanda, Student – Student (7th Grade), Government Inter College and Higher Secondary School, Gular Village
“I have seen a lot of improvement in my children. The way they talk and behave has changed since they started studying at Paathshala. They learn new things each day and tell us about it. The way the teachers teach here at Paathshala is very good, and according to me they are number one. I have learnt so much from them.”
Tek Singh – Parent, Gular Village
FINANCIALS
2221
23
We’ve been fortunate to have a strong network of partner organizations and collaborators, who’ve helped us strengthen our organizational foundation and given us the courage to spread our wings and fly high.
These individuals/organizations have shown their faith in our mission for building better pathways to quality education for children studying in government schools. We are deeply grateful to them for their guidance and unwavering support.
PARTNERSHIPS & COLLABORATIONS
Abhijit DuttaPublic Policy and
Corporate Affairs Professional
Chetan Mehra Executive Director & Team Head,
Bank of Singapore
Chinmayi SripadaArtist
Education Alliance & SDMC
Ravi GulatiFounder, Manzil
Rohit TandonFounder & CEO, Prajna India
Donor and Fundraising Advisor
Donor and Financial Advisor
Resource Partner and Donor
Government Partner, School Network Project
Training Partner & Mentor, Project Taleem
Donor and Financial Advisor
Partners/Collaborators Nature of Partnership
Samrath Bedi Executive Director,
Forest Essentials India
Sarva Siksha Abhiyan & Directorate of School Education,
Jammu & Kashmir
Sreya RakshitConsultant,
Corporate Communications
Sukanya VenkatWriter & Artist
Teach For India
Wipro Seeding Fellowship Program
CSR Partner, Project Paathshala
Government Partner, Project Taleem
Donor and Fundraising Advisor
Fundraising Partner & Donor
Knowledge & Resource Mentor
Funding & Knowledge Partner
Partners/Collaborators Nature of Partnership
In 2017, we will also formalize our founding Board of Directors. We believe as a social start up, having an objective, diverse and experienced BOD is imperative for our efficiency, impact and sustainability. We want to ensure that we build this oversight and due diligence framework right at the beginning, so that it becomes an integral part of our organization’s work culture.
2423
2017-18 will be another year of learning and growing! As we look ahead, we see a stronger and bigger team that will lead the way in innovating our program design and teaching and learning models.
Our organizational strategy for the next year will be to test our theory of change within the framework of our existing projects on the ground. This would mean activating pilot initiatives that allow us to explore and document the innovation and rigour we want to build within our project models. For that, we will focus on putting in systems and processes that enable us to build our team's mastery, strengthen our collective knowledge and use that to make our projects more sustainable and our impact outcomes more robust. We’re excited to fly higher with our paper plane and give wings to all our teachers and students to be the leaders of change in their classrooms and schools!
LOOKING AHEAD
2017-18 will be another year of learning and growing! As we look ahead, we see a stronger and bigger team that will lead the way in innovating our program design and teaching and learning models.
Our organizational strategy for the next year will be to test our theory of change within the framework of our existing projects on the ground. This would mean activating pilot initiatives that allow us to explore and document the innovation and rigour we want to build within our project models. For that, we will focus on putting in systems and processes that enable us to build our team's mastery, strengthen our collective knowledge and use that to make our projects more sustainable and our impact outcomes more robust. We’re excited to fly higher with our paper plane and give wings to all our teachers and students to be the leaders of change in their classrooms and schools!
25 26
EMAIL ID
CONTACT NO+91-9871136123+91- 8447821214+91-9654641751
ADDRESS
SIMPLE EDUCATION FOUNDATIONLearning Center, Galli No.8Tughalakabad Extension,
New Delhi – 110019
FOLLOW THE SEF PAPER PLANE ON:
@sefconnect
@sef.connect
@simpleeducationfoundation
Website: http://simpleeducationfoundation.org/
Simple Education Foundation is a Trust formed under the Indian Trust Act of 1882 and is approved under Section 80(g) of the Income Tax Act, 1961.
Change wi� not comeIF WE WAIT FOR SOME OTHER PERSON
OR SOME OTHER TIME
W E A R E T H E O N E S
WE’VE BEEN WAITING FOR
W E A R E T H E C H A N G E
that we seek
“
”- Barack Obama
