DEVI Sansthan and Asifabad District Administration Sign MoU to Launch ALfA Pedagogy

Lucknow, 15th May 2025– DEVI Sansthansuccessfully hostedLeadership Circle 3at the WUCC Auditorium, City Montessori School, LDA Branch, Lucknow. The two-day seminarbrought togetherover 600 education leaders, policy-makers, and change makers from across India tostrengthenthe national movement for Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN), aligned with the NIPUN Bharat Mission.

The Chief Guest for the eventwasMr. Awanish Kumar Awasthi (IAS), Chief Advisor to the Chief Minister, Government of Uttar Pradesh. Other distinguished guestsincludedMr. Puneet Bali, Director of Smile Foundation; Mr. Arun Arora, Executive Director of Chetak Foundation; Ms. Gauri Bhure-Roy, CSR Head at DXC Technology; and Mr. Yogesh Kumar, Head of HCL Foundation, among others.

A key highlight of Day 2wasthe formalsigningof a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between DEVI Sansthan and the district administration of Asifabad, Telangana, toinitiatethe pilot implementation of the ALfA program in the region.

In his address, Mr. Awasthiemphasized, “Strong learning outcomes in children and effective skilling of youth are the cornerstones of a nation’s growth. Countries like China have made remarkable strides in technology and infrastructure—especially in schools—laying a strong foundation for future generations. In India, through initiatives like the NIPUN Bharat Mission, we are also seeing promising progress. In Uttar Pradesh alone, about 1,18,000 schools exist, out of which 80,000 have applied for NIPUN accreditation, and 57,000 have achieved NIPUN readiness. While this is an encouraging milestone, there is still a critical need to further strengthen learning outcomes and empower schools to independently conduct and prepare for NIPUN assessments.”

Building on the success of previous editions, Leadership Circle 3evolvedfrom a state-level initiative into a nationwide platform,drawing participationfrom mid-level government officials—Block Education Officers (BEOs), DIET Principals, and Block Resource Coordinators—from 10 states and union territories, including Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu, Telangana, Maharashtra, Delhi, Jharkhand, Sikkim, Nagaland, and Andhra Pradesh.

Participantsengagedin dynamic panel discussions on topics such as“FLN – The World’s Best Investment,” “Overcoming Challenges to FLN for All,”and“Quality Education & Grassroot NGOs.”Hands-on training sessionsintroducedattendees to the Accelerating Learning for All (ALfA) pedagogy, DEVI Sansthan’s evidence-based and fast-track approach to foundational learning.

One of the highlightswastheEducators’ Panelon Day 2, where leaders from Jammu, Himachal Pradesh, Maharashtra, Telangana, and other statessharedtheir ALfA implementation experiences. Mr. Babu Singh, Zonal Education Officer from Jammu,remarked, “Around 30 trainers in our district have been trained with modern methodologies. It is vital to constantly update teaching methods and empower educators with innovative tools. We are now implementing these approaches across all zones.”

The ALfA methodology,developedthrough extensive research and practical field experience,is designedto accelerate foundational literacy and numeracy for children across varied contexts. Since its introduction in 2022–23, the ALfA programhas expandedfrom 20 schools to over 35,000 government schools across India andhas been adaptedinto 33 national and international languages,setting the stagefor global dissemination. Implementation effortsare ongoingin states like Uttar Pradesh, Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Telangana, Jharkhand, and select regions inMaharashtra, Haryana, and Punjab, with more partnerships in progress.

Dr. Sunita Gandhi, Founder of DEVI Sansthan,emphasizedthe event’s significance, stating, “Leadership Circle 3witnessedenthusiastic participation, with leaderssharingground-level experiences of adopting innovative methodologies to boost student learning outcomes. The eventsuccessfully unifiededucators, teachers, and officials onto a common platform to strategize for achieving the NIPUN 2027 goals. The role of government officials is particularly crucial in ensuring the statewide adoption and sustainability of these innovative practices.”

A special focuswas placedon building institutional capacity across 50 blocks in Uttar Pradesh toembedfoundational learning practices deeply into the education system, ensuring scalability and sustainability. DEVI Sansthanaimsto reach over 500,000 students in the next five years through these initiatives.