REMOTE TUTORING
Targeted, one-on-one phone tutoring program to improve math learning and parental engagement
Randomized evaluations carried out in six countries show that a targeted instructional approach delivered over phone can be effective in improving children’s basic numeracy and math learning as well as boosting parental engagement.
In India, which has one of the biggest school systems in the world, nearly every eligible child receives primary education. But they are not learning well. The ASER 2024 report found that over half of India’s 10-year-olds struggle to read a simple story or solve basic arithmetic operations such as division. These statistics have brought the significance of foundational learning — basic literacy and arithmetic skills of children — into sharp focus.
Partners
 |  |  |
| Department of School Education and Literacy Government of Karnataka | Youth Impact | Alokit |
The Government of India has been prioritizing foundational learning. It revised the National Education Policy (NEP) in 2020 to emphasize strong foundational education for children between three and eight years of age. In 2022, the Ministry of Education launched the National Initiative for Proficiency in Reading with Understanding and Numeracy (NIPUN) Bharat Mission to ensure universal foundational learning by 2025.
NGO Youth Impact developed a targeted, phone-tutoring program to improve math learning and numeracy among children. Researchers part of J-PAL’s global network first tested the program’s impact in Botswana at a time when Covid-19 resulted in prolonged school closures. Following the promising results, the program was replicated and tested in India, Kenya, Nepal, Philippines, and Uganda. The program is now being piloted in the southern Indian state of Karnataka, where it has been embedded within the government system and is being delivered uninterrupted for a full academic year.
Evidence-to-action story
RESEARCH
J-PAL affiliated researcher Peter Bergman (The University of Texas at Austin), along with Noam Angrist (University of Oxford), ran a randomized evaluation in Botswana to test the impact of a phone-based tailored instruction program on children’s math skills and parental engagement during Covid-19 school closures. Angrist is currently studying the impact of the program in Karnataka within the government system, especially when implemented uninterrupted for a full academic year.
RESULTS
The study in Botswana found the program improved math learning among children of between grades 3 and 5 and enhanced parental engagement. The results prompted a coalition of NGOs, governments, multilateral organizations, and researchers in India, Kenya, Nepal, Philippines, and Uganda to replicate and test the program, with J-PAL as a key partner. Math learning improved in all six countries. Government and NGO tutors were equally effective at delivering the intervention.
SCALE-UP
In 2024, J-PAL South Asia, along with NGOs Youth Impact and Alokit, partnered with the Government of Karnataka to expand the phone-based tailored instruction programme — known as ‘Ganitha Ganaka’ in the state — to reach 456,000 students between grades 3 and 5.
Point of contact
Charul Dhingra
Policy Manager, J-PAL South Asia
[email protected]
Charul Dhingra is a Policy Manager at J-PAL South Asia, focusing on the scale-up of evidence-based programs. In her current role, she collaborates closely with program stakeholders, including NGO partners, government agencies, donors, and academic researchers, to facilitate the scaling up of Math Games.