When we started Rocket Learning, we had a simple yet audacious goal – helping every child be ready with foundational skills. Our co-founders had worked in the education and social impact sectors and seen government systems up close, realizing that combining all three with cutting-edge technology could enable low-cost yet scalable impact. The 1.5 million children we have impacted are our proof of concept.
Today, Rocket Learning is celebrating its third anniversary and finally reached the age of the children we work with. Like all three-year-olds, we constantly learn, grow, and develop. By the time we turn six, we aim to help every young child of that age be ready for school and life.
Reflecting on our journey, we remember sitting in COVID-induced early morning zoom calls, brainstorming pitches, and landing our first mandates in Aurangabad and Chandigarh. From 1 district to 65, 1 state to 8, and 20,000 to 1.5 million parents and children, we have tried our very best to move at rocket-speed, so we can get closer to serving the millions of children who need our support.
In these three years, we have learned invaluable lessons. We have listened to the community we serve, allowing them to guide and drive our work. We have adapted and evolved from sending long videos to now ones, from using several animated characters to sticking to one. The people we aim to empower have informed our work and growth.
While we started by introducing a singular model that only served parents and children, we have now moved to three significant pillars of impact to create a sustainable movement:
- First, our innovative parent engagement model provides bite-sized audio-visual content directly to parents using the platform they already know and use—WhatsApp.
- Second, our teacher engagement model empowers Anganwadi workers (daycare workers) to become educators through a hybrid training approach, combining in-person and digital resources.
- Third, our policy and advocacy efforts focus on bringing Early Childhood Care & Education (ECCE) to the forefront of the national discourse.
But our work doesn’t end here. While we recognize how far we have come, we acknowledge there is still a long way to go. Continuing our streak of three, we have three ambitious goals for the future:
- Firstly, we aim for India to have the world’s first well-functioning, universal, government-anchored Early Childhood Development System.
- Secondly, we are building the first-of-its-kind AI/ML coach and model for low-income parent and teacher behaviour change, scalable to tens of millions.
- Finally, on our agenda is the expansion of our reach to include 0-3-year-olds, focusing on early stimulation and nutrition.
When we embarked on this journey three years ago, we dared to dream of a better future for every child. Today, with the knowledge gained, and the passion ignited, we stand poised to shape that future. We invite you to join us in our mission as we continue to learn, grow, and reach new heights to empower every child and transform early education in India.
– Azeez Gupta, Namya Mahajan, Siddhant Sachdeva, Utsav Kheria, Vishal Sunil