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As of the time of writing, we are six weeks into I would like to express my eternal gratitude to Milita
enabling learners to work together and provide
positive feedback, fostering a collaborative learning
environment. Most importantly, ALfA is designed
to be enjoyable for both teachers and learners. It
adopts a student-centric approach where learners
have agency in their own learning process. Teachers
serve as facilitators, demonstrating the method
and then allowing learners to engage in activities
independently.
Motivated by the literacy crisis in the United States,
where 130 million adults struggle to read basic
sentences, making everyday life challenging or
even impossible, I was determined to explore ALfA
further. According to the Barbara Bush Foundation
for Family Literacy, 1 in 4 children in the U.S. grows
up without acquiring the essential skill of reading,
and research suggests that 2 out of 3 children who
struggle with reading by 4th grade end up facing
long-term difficulties, potentially leading to welfare
or incarceration.
When invited to join the Global Advisory Committee
for Dr. Gandhi’s organization, DEVI Sansthan, I
eagerly accepted and traveled to Lucknow, India,
in March 2023 to participate in the first Global
Summit. The summit included free training in the
ALfA program and a gathering of policymakers
from various countries to discuss literacy issues
worldwide. Over the course of two days, 26,000
individuals and 200 policymakers convened virtually
to engage in these crucial discussions.
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During my visit, I had the incredible opportunity
to visit several schools in Lucknow and witness
the impact of ALfA on children who had learned to
read through the program. It was a truly remarkable
experience to see young children confidently reading
from newspapers. I observed teachers implementing
the ALfA methods and listened to their inspiring
stories.
Filled with conviction that ALfA is an effective
approach, we decided to initiate a pilot program at
Literacy Chicago with a group of adult learners who
have struggled with reading. Since 1968, Literacy
Chicago has been dedicated to teaching adults how
to read. While I couldn’t find more recent statistics
for Chicago, data from 2014 indicates that 882,000
adults in the city possess low basic literacy skills.
Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic has likely
exacerbated this issue.
In April 2023, we carefully selected a group of
learners willing to participate in the ALfA pilot
program for three months. They committed to
attending classes regularly, three times a week,
with each session lasting two hours. The first hour
focused on literacy instruction, while the second
hour addressed numeracy skills.
Both the pilot group and a control group, attending
our regular reading classes, underwent pre-testing
using the Slosson Oral Reading Test (SORT) and the
ALfA Numeracy Assessment.
the pilot program, and I would like to share some Halder, whose initial outreach connected me to this
preliminary observations: transformative opportunity. We are all aware that
by empowering more individuals with the gift of
Initially, both learners and teachers faced literacy, we can make a profound difference in their
challenges in “unlearning” the traditional alphabet lives and positively impact those around them.
and transitioning to focusing on the sounds. This
adjustment period lasted a few days. Building on our success, Literacy Chicago is forging
a partnership with DEVI Sansthan to facilitate the
It took some time for learners to fully embrace nationwide implementation of ALfA in the United
the ALfA method. Changing partners and sitting in States, pending the expected positive outcomes of
different seats presented difficulties for our learners our pilot program. We are committed to addressing
as it took them out of their comfort zones. Initially, the pressing literacy crisis in our country and
some found it childish. ensuring that every individual, regardless of their
background or circumstances, has the opportunity to
Learners were unaccustomed to working in pairs or acquire essential literacy skills.
providing feedback to each other, so there was a
learning curve in this aspect. The journey towards universal literacy is not an
easy one, but with innovative methods like ALfA and
One learner with dyslexia encountered more the collective efforts of passionate individuals and
difficulties compared to the others. Absenteeism has organizations, we can turn the tide and empower
been influenced by factors such as illness, childcare countless lives through the transformative power
responsibilities, and other challenges that adult of literacy. Together, let us continue to strive for a
learners face in their daily lives. future where literacy is a fundamental right for all,
opening doors of opportunity and unlocking the full
Teachers often felt the urge to provide assistance potential of individuals and communities.
in the traditional manner, and it has been a learning
process for them as well. In the ALfA process,
learners are expected to learn primarily on their own.
Joanne Telser-Frere has been working as the
Director of Program Development at Literacy
Nevertheless, despite these initial challenges, Chicago since 2016.
learners are now genuinely enjoying the ALfA
method. One woman, who previously couldn’t read a
single word in English, proudly shared with me, “I can Citations:
read! When I’m driving, I can read street signs, and
I’m no longer afraid of getting lost.” She expressed https://www.barbarabush.org/
how reading has brought about a life-changing https://www.prosperityforamerica.org/literacy-
transformation for her. statistics/#:~:text=1%20in%204%20children%20in,to%20high%20
English%20literacy%20skills.
Another student, who has attention difficulties and https://www.dignityeducation.org/GlobalAdvisoryCommittee.aspx
disabilities, can now confidently read a list of words https://www.chicago.gov/content/dam/city/depts/dcd/we_will/
without hesitation. It fills my heart with joy to walk we_will_documents/learn_4.pdf
into the classroom and hear the buzz of voices as
our learners read aloud, engage in math activities,
and experience a newfound sense of confidence and
accomplishment. I am confident that the post-testing
will reveal significant improvements in both literacy
and numeracy scores.
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