External talks, Interviews & Articles

January 2021

• January 27, 2021: Wilima Wadhwa wrote an opinion piece in the Indian Express. Children from economically weaker backgrounds have fallen behind as classes shifted to the digital mode

• January 24, 2021: I4I Editor-in-Chief Ashok Kotwal speaks with Rukmini Banerji (CEO of Pratham; India’s largest education non-profit) and Wilima Wadhwa (Director, Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) Centre) Covid-19 and schooling: 2020 experience and way forward

• January 24, 2021: Dr. Rukmini Banerji was one of the speakers at the YouthEdTalk 3.0 event on the International EducationDay organised by the Education Above All Foundation. She spoke on Education, a key to post-COVID-19 pandemic recovery. Watch here: YouthTalkEd 3.0: How can we prevent a generational catastrophe?

• January 24, 2021: Dr. Rukmini Banerji spoke at Flame University Purpose Summit 2021 and an all-women panel on social transformation. FLAME University Purpose Summit 2021. The entire session can be accessed here.

• January 16, 2021: Rukmini Banerji spoke with Times Network on early childhood learning. She spoke on the unique role that the Anganwadis and Balwadis ecosystem play in fostering India’s literacy and numeracy conversation. Early Learning Matters

• January 15:  Jharkhand government organized a webinar for mothers and teachers in the stateSukhada Ghosalkar and Shailendra Kumar Singh from Pratham were among the panelists. Shailendra’s session  can be watched here.  
• Kadambini Bandhu Milana: Rukmini spoke at the annual event organised by Odiya magazine Kadambini. Link to the recording:  Kadambini Bandhu Milana

• January 9, 2021: Rukmini Banerji delivered a Ted Talk at IIM Calcutta’s virtual event. She spoke about ‘A New Hope’ in education and learning in the aftermath of the pandemic. TED X IIM Calcutta: A New Hope – address by Rukmini Banerji
• Learning New Ways to Educate | Dr. Rukmini Banerji | TEDxIIMCalcutta (Youtube)

• January 5, 2021: Rukmini Banerji appeared on ET Now TV newschannel for its program India Development Debate. The conversation was anchored by Tamanna Inamdar and focused on school reopening. India Development Debate: When Will Kids Go Back to School?
• January 4, 2021: Faiyaz Ahmed and Shailendra Sharma wrote for the December issue of ‘Pathshala Bheetar Aur Bahar’ – the monthly hindi publication by the Azim Premji Foundation focusing on the stakeholders in the education domain. Their article was titled ‘Har Ghar ek School, Har Abhibhavak ek Shikshak’.  

• January 4, 2021: The Accountability Initiative hosted a panel discussion in December on ‘Capacity Building for Better Coordination with the Local Government’, as part of the Badhte Kadam webinar. The panel deliberated on the relationship between the civil society and the government, and their dynamics. Sanjay Kumar from Pratham was a speaker. This blog captures the discussion held at the event. Insights on Civil Society – Local Government Coordination

• January 2, 2021: Medha and Annette wrote an article for Scroll, discussing the different forms of worker vulnerability during our current times. Data was collected by interviewing Pratham Institute’s placement partners. The goal at the time was to understand how different industries are likely to react to the pandemic, and this was the recurring theme across trades. The article highlights specific differences across three main sectors – manufacturing, service-based, and healthcare. Migrant workers have returned to India’s cities – but they are even more vulnerable now