We know that reading to pre-literate children increases literacy uptake, book sense, and yields positive outcomes later in life. However, many children and their parents do not have access to age-appropriate, relevant, and diverse reading material.
Can mobile phones play a role in increasing access to quality reading experiences for young children?
In partnership with Worldreader , R4D led the evaluation and learning of Read to Kids (R2K), a pilot in India that seeks to promote literacy by encouraging and empowering parents and caregivers to read to (and with) their young children by giving them access to a digital library of high-quality, locally-relevant children’s books via an app on their mobile phones.
The evaluation and learning activities were initiated in October 2015 with a 5-month formative research phase consisting of interviews and focus groups with potential users to understand the barriers to reading with children (e.g., access to content, time for reading, literacy levels, and beliefs about the value of reading to young children).
Informed by the formative research phase, on-the-ground activities to drive uptake of the app and build awareness about the importance of reading with children were implemented beginning in April 2016. Through early 2017, we experimented with multiple channels to engage and educate parents and caregivers, with a focus on quickly identifying which outreach channels were most effective at driving frequent use of the mobile app. These channels include a media campaign and three local implementing partners (a community development organization, a network of affordable healthcare clinics, and a network of early childhood education centers).
R4D co-created a learning agenda with Pearson and Worldreader, including a Theory of Change and a Results Framework for monitoring success. This work led to the selection of three diverse local partners, and an in-country monitoring and evaluation consultant to help guide learning on the ground.
Throughout the pilot, R4D led quarterly “Learning Checks,” during which all partners spend the week reviewing data, sharing experiences on the ground, and troubleshooting challenges, all in an effort to create a set of action steps that will yield improved service delivery and better outcomes in the subsequent quarter. Partners value this mix of data visualizations and experiences from the field to make informed decisions about the path forward.
Finally, R4D put together a three-day close-out workshop in an effort to reflect on lessons learned from the project and the adaptive approach taken to evaluate it. This workshop consisted of a thorough review of the findings, methods, and tools, as well as sessions to support Worldreader’s efforts to adapt the process in Jordan going forward. The final deliverable to come out of this close-out workshop was a comprehensive documentation of tools and processes, and how they were applied to the pilot in India.