Impact at Scale Labs - Foundational Literacy and Numeracy

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Impact at Scale Labs - Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN) seeks to transform education systems by working with promising innovators. The Lab aims to do this by carefully selecting locally-led organisations who have promising visions for scaling their FLN programmes in low-middle income contexts.

Strategic Priority

Knowledge Accelerator

Funding Catalyst

Partnership Builder

Who does the Lab support?

The Lab will select organisations with solutions that improve teaching and pedagogical approaches, such as structured pedagogy and teaching at the right level, and other proven pedagogical approaches. The focus will be on in-school interventions focused on primary grades 1-3; higher grades of primary; and remedial programmes.

Impact is integral to how we think about scale at GSF. We recognise that selecting the right organisations at the right stage is important. Therefore, the Lab will support medium-sized or large education organisations that have solutions at either the launch phase or at the growth stage.

Meet our seven grantees and their innovations

Angaza Elimu

Kalamu - Kalamu uses GenAI to advance practical structured teacher support to Teach at the Right Level framework for enhanced foundational literacy and numeracy outcomes in Kenyan public primary schools.

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Axium Education

Nobalisa Literacy programme - The programme trains and supports young people, employed through the government's Social Employment Fund, to deliver twice weekly one-hour isiXhosa language lessons a week to 4,500 learners in Grades R-3, using a Teaching at the Right Level approach.

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Leadership for Equity

Improving Foundational Literacy and Numeracy Outcomes at Scale - LFE, aims to improve the foundational learning outcomes by a three-pronged approach by building the capacity of teachers on FLN subject and pedagogical knowledge; strengthening academic leadership for in-class observation and mentoring; and supporting district administrators with learning governance & data-based decision-making.

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Duara Education

Duara’s teacher-owned, community-based microschools - Duara Education transforms female teachers into entrepreneurs of their own community-based microschool, leveraging the power of innovations and decentral networks. The microschools are montessori-inspired, project-driven and integrated into the community, enabling impactful Teaching at the Right Level to achieve FLN outcomes.

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Inspiring Teachers Ghana

Tools for Foundational Learning Improvement (TFLI) - This curriculum-aligned, structured pedagogy programme helps teachers use systematic phonics teaching and in-classroom assessment-informed targeted instruction.

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Peepul

CM RISE Schools in Madhya Pradesh, India - Peepul implements a ‘high-engagement classroom pedagogy’ at scale to enhance learning outcomes in Madhya Pradesh state government’s flagship CM RISE Schools. They do this through need-specific teacher training, rigorous academic mentoring, and strengthening governance and institutions to enable systemic mindset shifts.

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Room to Read

Improving Early Literacy Outcomes in Non-Formal Schools in Tanzania - This holistic programme improves learning outcomes by frequent in-service teacher training (and pre-service support) in early grade literacy; and engaging dedicated literacy facilitators who provide coaching and mentoring support to an appropriate number of schools.

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Learn about other shortlisted organisations and their innovations

EducAid Sierra Leone

EducAid’s Top Ten Strategies for Remediation - EducAid’s intervention focuses on training schoolteachers and leaders on its “Top Ten Strategies for Remediation” to adopt positive behaviour management approaches, respectful relationships and radically advancing teaching practices to improve learning outcomes.

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EKitabu

Digital Story Time, an eKitabu innovation - The innovation transforms classrooms into sign-language-rich learning environments. The solution’s components tackle persistent problems affecting deaf children’s language & literacy development.

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Instill Education

Micro-credentialing - Expanding access to teaching qualifications across Ghana The solution speaks to the heart of the African education crisis; we need more, better-trained teachers. The micro-credentialing model delivers locally accredited teaching degrees in a scalable, affordable, and practical manner. Their blended delivery model removes the barriers of finance and access and can develop teaching talent across Ghana.

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Link Community Development Malawi

Inclusive Complementary Basic Education - The solution provides training packs and continuous professional development materials that support the use of Inclusive Education techniques at all stages of teaching, from lesson planning to delivery to assessment.

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Right To Play Ghana

Innovative Teaching for Improved Foundational Learning in Ghana - Enhancing the quality of the cascading of the Teacher Professional Development for teachers in public and private schools with a focus on Basic 1-3 through a blended (online and in-person) training.

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We recently concluded our third in-person offsite in Nairobi

Global Schools Forum hosted its third offsite in Nairobi, convening nine foundational literacy and numeracy (FLN) organisations from our Impact at Scale Labs – Foundational Literacy and Numeracy portfolio and Impact Accelerator programmes. This gathering marked a pivotal milestone in the organisations’ journey, bringing the cohort together to inspire, connect, and equip them with invaluable insights for scaling their impact.

Grantee testimonials

Our organisations have dedicated time to delve into crucial topics like building partnerships and strengthening evidence for scale. Practitioners and thought leaders from the education community—including Ruth Kagia (GPE), Ben Piper (Gates Foundation), and Samuel Kembou (Jacobs Foundation)—shared their insights and fresh perspectives. Their contributions sparked meaningful discussions on evidence-based methods for scaling FLN initiatives.

Craig Paxton

Executive Director, Axium

We are really excited about this great opportunity. We are looking forward to receiving strong support to advance our work of providing teachers with structured support to enhance the Teaching at the Right Level framework. This support comes at the perfect time to ensure all learners benefit from pedagogically sound strategies.

Kiko Muuo

CEO, Angaza Elimu

We are really delighted, thrilled, and frankly honoured to be included in the Impact at Scale Lab programme. We look forward to making the most of the opportunity and ensuring that our team translates this support into improved learning outcomes for children and better support for teachers. It’s coming at the right time for our work in Ghana.

Simon Graffy

Co-Founder and CEO, Inspiring Teachers

We are thrilled and grateful to be joining the GSF Impact at Scale Lab! This opportunity comes at an exciting moment for Duara and will be catalytic in our journey as we expand our collective of community-based microschools and deepen our impact. By being part of the Labs, we aim to strengthen our learning approach and teaching practices.

Victoria Piell

Founder, Duara Education

We are thrilled about our selection for the Impact at Scale Lab programme. GSF is an incredible community, and it is very exciting to be part of this programme, which offers layers of support for organisations whose programmes are at inflection points. We are really looking forward to the brainstorming, impact evaluation support, and thought partnering.

Kruti Bharucha

Founder and CEO, Peepul

The CLR–LFE teams are humbled and beyond excited to be selected for the 2024 GSF Impact at Scale Lab! As we continue to serve underserved rural children in Maharashtra (India), we are keen to leverage the vast experience of GSF’s leadership team and organisational network to help us learn from global best practices and apply them in our local contexts.

Madhukar Banuri

Director, Leadership For Equity (LFE)

Each grantee is supported by a set of advisors who guide them on big picture thinking

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Caitlin Baron

CEO, Luminos Fund

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Devang Vussonji

Co-founder/Director, Axum/Elimu Soko

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George Srour

Cofounder and Chief Dreamer, Building Tomorrow

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Grace Matlhape

CEO, Smartstart

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Ivana Zacarias

Programs Director, GSL

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Jenn Cotter

Founder and CEO, Education Design Unlimited

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Larry Cooley

Founder, Management Systems International (MSI)

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Laura Brown

Outgoing CEO, PEAS

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Lorraine d'Anglejan

Associate Director, ID Insight

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Nangamso Mtsatse

Head of Foundational Learning, Teach for All

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Parmod Kumar

State Nodal of FLN NIPUN Mission, NIPUN

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Philip Okull

Director of Impact Evaluation, Educate!

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Salome Ong'ele

Chief of Party, Kenya Primary Literacy Program

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Shabnam Aggarwal

Chief Technical Officer, Rising Academies

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Stacey Brewer

CEO, Spark Schools, eAdvance Group

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Tony Dogbe

Executive Director, Sabre Education

We thank our Investment Committee who supported us in selecting our grantees

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Alina Lipcan

Director GSF

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Clio Dintilhac

Senior Program Officer, Gates Foundation

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Philip Lawford

CEO, AKO Foundation

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Chanel Samuels

Program Officer SA, Michael & Susan Dell Foundation

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Dr. Pearl Boateng

Associate Director, Better Purpose

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Dr. Albert Dupigny

Senior Adviser, Ministry of Basic and Senior Secondary Education in Sierra Leone

Knowledge Accelerator

Funding Catalyst

Partnership Builder

Impact at Scale Labs

The Impact at Scale Labs programme provides catalytic funding and tailored support to help promising, locally-led education organisations scale their impact. The programme works with grantees to generate and distil evidence and learnings on what works in education and why, sharing these findings to inform national, regional, and global policies and programmes.

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Knowledge Accelerator

Partnership Builder

Scale Toolkit

The Scale Toolkit, developed through the Impact at Scale Labs programme, offers practical tools and learnings for organisations to assess and improve their solution's readiness for scale, regardless of whether it's a new or an existing project. It's built around the Desirability, Viability, Feasibility (DVF) framework, with every tool meticulously linked to these key pillars. The toolkit also includes real-world case studies to inspire and inform your scaling strategies.

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