The goal of ensuring fundamental literacy for every child remains at the forefront, with the belief that sharing experiences and best practices will facilitate targeted action to achieve this aim.
The goal of ensuring fundamental literacy for every child remains at the forefront, with the belief that sharing experiences and best practices will facilitate targeted action to achieve this aim.
India has underscored the importance of foundational literacy and numeracy as prerequisites for all future schooling and lifelong learning at the 4th Education Working Group Meeting of the G20 the country hosted at Savitribai Phule Pune University.
Union Minister of State for Education and External Affairs Shri Rajkumar Ranjan Singh emphasized the commitment of India’s G20 EdWG presidency to quality education and acceleration of the attainment of Sustainable Development Goals. He highlighted that Shri Sanjay Kumar, secretary of school education, stressed the importance of involving all stakeholders, including parents, caregivers, and community members, in supporting learning at home.
The discussion centered on the theme of “Ensuring Foundational Literacy and Numeracy” within the context of Blended Learning. The meeting coincided with a seminar organized by India’s G20 presidency, which was attended by 50 delegates from 20 countries. The Group of Twenty or G20 comprises Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, the United Kingdom, the United States, and the European Union.
The seminar consisted of three sessions that discussed teaching-learning approaches and pedagogy for FLN, the role of parents, caregivers, and community members in supporting FLN, and capacity building and training of teachers for FLN in multilingual environments.
On the sidelines of the EdWG meeting, an exhibition showcasing FLN-related initiatives and digital learning was held. The event had more than 12,000 attendees and over 80 exhibitors from around the world, providing a platform for organizations such as NCERT, Microsoft, and UNICEF to showcase their work. The delegates also participated in a Heritage Walk of Pune City, immersing themselves in the rich cultural heritage of Maharashtra.
During the first day of the meeting, deliberations were held on the draft ministerial declaration. G20 members and invited countries commended the Indian Presidency for setting a comprehensive agenda. Shri Harsh Vardhan Shringla, the chief coordinator of India’s G20 presidency, highlighted the value of sharing best practices from the previous meetings, focusing on the future of work, tech-enabled learning, and research collaboration.
As the meetings concluded, the goal of ensuring fundamental literacy for every child remains at the forefront, with the belief that sharing experiences and best practices will facilitate targeted action to achieve this aim.
