The Crisis
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Holistic student development, which includes physical, intellectual, and socio-emotional aspects, is essential for shaping productive, responsible, and dignified lives, yet it is largely missing in India’s school system. With only ~5% of the workforce formally skilled, most students never experience safe, joyful, skills, values and competencies-based classrooms that prepare them for life and work.
Weak foundational learning, rote-based schooling, and lack of problem-solving and communication skills in mid-higher schooling mostly; additionally, students lack exposure to vocational skills, applied learning, and career pathways during the school journey itself.
Poor retention and disengagement in classrooms, combined with weak SEL and employability skills, push many students off productive pathways. Most under-resourced schools also lack digital infrastructure, trained teachers, and future-ready curricula, widening the readiness gap.
The root cause of these challenges lies in the classroom learning experience. Students spend nearly 40% of their waking time in school with teachers and even more in residential and partially residential settings, making the school environment the most powerful influence on their development. What is nurtured in these spaces ultimately shapes students’ destiny, and through eight years of deep engagement with children, we have seen that weak classroom experiences are at the heart of this crisis.