Pratham’s Teaching at the Right Level (TaRL) method helps children (ideally in Grades 3 and above) “catch up” and acquire foundational learning skills.
TEACHING-LEARNING VIDEOS
Videos showcasing the key elements of TaRL teaching-learning approach:
Overall: Teaching at the Right Level
Methodology: For Grades 3-5, Combined Activities for Maximised Learning (CAMaL)
PRATHAM-GOVERNMENT PARTNERSHIPS FOR IMPROVING LEARNING
Watch this video to understand how Pratham works in partnership with governments to improve learning outcomes at the district and state levels:
Padho Jehanabad: A short film from 2013 set in Bihar's Jehanabad district.
TEACHING AT THE RIGHT LEVEL DOCUMENTS

Pratham’s Teaching at the Right Level (TaRL) approach was recommended as a ‘Great Buy’ in the Global Education Evidence Advisory Panel (GEEAP) 2023 report. See here
This report provides a guide for governments and other stakeholders in low and middle-income countries about what works in improving learning and education outcomes. Produced by the Global Education Evidence Advisory Panel (GEEAP), an independent interdisciplinary panel of global experts in international educational evidence and implementation, the current report updates a previous version of the Smart Buys. The report is supported by the World Bank, FCDO, USAID and UNICEF.
PUBLISHED ARTICLES IN PEER-REVIEWED JOURNALS
These are longer and more academic but will give you a sense of the depth of the work at Pratham:
- About the teaching-learning method
This article outlines the evolution of Pratham’s teaching-learning approach as well as the development of the implementation models over time.
Improving Literacy and Math Instruction at Scale in India’s Primary Schools: The Case of Pratham’s Read India Program by Rukmini Banerji and Madhav Chavan, 2016. Published in the Journal of Educational Change.
- About the evolution of the approach over time
Learning for All: Lessons from ASER and Pratham in India on the Role of Citizens and Communities on Improving Children’s Learning by Rukmini Banerji, 2021. Published as a book chapter (no. 13) in the edited volume of Powering a Learning Society in an Age of Disruption by the Education in the Asia-Pacific Region: Issues, Concerns and Prospects (ADB Springer).
- About the evaluations/effectiveness of the model: Articles based on randomized control trials done by J-PAL
Mainstreaming an Effective Intervention. Evidence from Randomized Evaluations of “Teaching at the Right Level” in India. This paper gives a quick overview and summary of the external evidence (via randomized control trials) over time.
From Proof of Concept to Scalable Policies: Challenges and Solutions, with an Application. Working paper published by the National Bureau of Economic Research, 2016.
OTHER PUBLISHED DOCUMENTS/REPORTS ON TaRL
- Teaching at the Right Level: From Concern with Exclusion to Challenges of Implementation. Background paper by Rukmini Banerji, Samyukta Lakshman and Arjun Agarwal for UNESCO GEM Report 2020: Inclusion and Education.
- Evidence in Practice series: Pratham’s Teaching at the Right Level. Case study. Yale School of Management.
- Millions Learning: Scaling up Quality Education in Developing Countries. Brookings Institution, 2016.
- Poor Economics: A Radical Re-thinking of the Way to Fight Global Poverty. Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo, 2011. See the Chapter on Education.
- Pratham: The Challenge of Converting Schooling to Learning in India. Case Study. Harvard Kennedy School, 2020. Michael Walton and Isabel Guerrero.
HISTORY OF PRATHAM-J-PAL PARTNERSHIP AND THE EVOLUTION OF TaRL
This partnership spans over 20 years. A series of impact evaluations (randomized control trials) by Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) have accompanied the evolution of the TaRL approach. Some of the articles listed below were written when Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo were awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics in 2019.
- A Twenty-Year Partnership of Practice and Research: The Nobel laureates and Pratham in India by Rukmini Banerji and Madhav Chavan, 2020. World Development
- Banerjee and Duflo’s Journey with Pratham by Rukmini Banerji, 2019. Ideas4India.
English and Hindi versions available. - Classroom to Stockholm: Glimpses of Pratham’s 20-year partnership with Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo. Rukmini Banerji, 2019. Editorial page published in The Indian Express.
Last Updated_ 2024