Illam Thedi Kalvi (ITK) is a flagship initiative by the Tamil Nadu Department of School Education designed to address learning gaps among students in Classes 1–8 caused by the pandemic and to mainstream Out-of-School Children (OoSC). The program adopts a hamlet-based outreach model to provide remedial education in non-school.
Illam Thedi Kalvi (ITK) is a flagship initiative by the Tamil Nadu Department of School Education designed to address learning gaps among students in Classes 1–8 caused by the pandemic and to mainstream Out-of-School Children (OoSC). The program adopts a hamlet-based outreach model to provide remedial education in non-school.
Program Reach &
Implementation
The program targets over 3.5 million government school students across ~80,000 habitations in Tamil Nadu, in 2 cohorts:
Primary Cohort:
Classes 1–5
Upper Primary Cohort:
Classes 6–8
ITK is powered by
200,000+
trained volunteers, each supporting approximately 20 students. Volunteers are selected through a rigorous screening process, including psychometric tests and focus group discussions.
Eligibility for Volunteers:
- High school diploma (for teaching primary classes)
- Degree (for teaching upper primary classes)
ITK is powered by
200,000+
trained volunteers, each supporting approximately 20 students. Volunteers are selected through a rigorous screening process, including psychometric tests and focus group discussions.
Eligibility for Volunteers:
- High school diploma (for teaching primary classes)
- Degree (for teaching upper primary classes)
Bridging Learning Gaps
The initiative aims to mitigate severe learning losses identified by research, which showed students lagging significantly in mathematics and language skills compared to pre-pandemic levels. ITK provides:
- 1.5 hours of daily education for children who lacked access to online learning during school closures.
TEA serves as the Project Management Unit (PMU), overseeing the end-to-end implementation of the program in partnership with the Tamil Nadu School Education Department.
Bridging Learning Gaps
The initiative aims to mitigate severe learning losses identified by research, which showed students lagging significantly in mathematics and language skills compared to pre-pandemic levels. ITK provides:
- 1.5 hours of daily education for children who lacked access to online learning during school closures.
TEA serves as the Project Management Unit (PMU), overseeing the end-to-end implementation of the program in partnership with the Tamil Nadu School Education Department.
Goal
Bridge learning gaps among students in Classes 1–8
caused by the pandemic and mainstream Out-of-School
Children.
Key Focus
Areas
Alignment of Content
with State FLN Mission
Training of Volunteers
Digital Modules
and Dashboards
Key Focus
Areas
Alignment of Content with State FLN Mission
Training of Volunteers
Digital Modules and Dashboards
Our
Impacts
25%
ITK’s contribution to learning loss
recovery
25%
Overall recovery of the state
25%
Boost in centre attendance through
engaging teaching methods
Our
Impacts
25%
ITK’s contribution to learning loss recovery
25%
Overall recovery of the state
25%
Boost in centre attendance through engaging teaching methods
Source- Study by Prof. K. Muralidharan, State Level Planning Commission Survey
Social Links
