In a bustling Delhi MCD classroom, Ms. Monika, a Grade 1 teacher, begins her day much like thousands of other teachers: constantly multitasking while managing over 60 eager faces. All while striving to ensure her students learn effectively.
Despite these challenges, she taught with care, patience, and the belief that children would eventually learn to read if they were exposed to enough practice.
“I believed they would eventually learn,” she reflects. “I didn’t realise the problem was the method.”
In most MCD classrooms, English, often a second or third language for children, has remained on the backseat due to limited exposure and a lack of structured support for teachers. However, English remains a language of opportunities, employment and communication in modern times.
Phonics instruction is proven to help children improve phonological awareness and read faster by teaching letter–sound relationship and how to blend them into words. However, for many teachers, phonics is an unfamiliar territory.
Recognising this gap, Peepul piloted a one-of-its-kind Phonics Programme across 40+ MCD schools in the Shahdara North Zone. The programme focused on helping teachers understand how children learn to read. Instead of rote learning or memorisation, the focus was on teaching children the relationship between sounds and letters, and how to blend them to read words independently.
For Ms. Monika, the workshop was eye-opening. “Before attending the workshop by the Peepul team, I believed English has 26 letters, so naturally there must be 26 sounds.” She exclaimed, “I was surprised to learn that English actually has 42 sounds!”
Reflecting on her experience, she shared, “It has been a life-changing experience for us teachers and for our students who are learning to read.”
She found the phonics approach and strategies shared both practical and empowering. She recalls, “During the phonics workshop, my attitude and aptitude towards reading completely changed. I learned that phonics needs to be taught in a systematic progression, using blending and segmenting to help children decode unfamiliar words.”
When Ms. Monika began implementing phonics in her classroom, the change started to unfold.
“Now my students carefully observe my mouth movements and facial expressions to pronounce sounds correctly,” she says. “They imitate me and roll their tongue in the same way.”
Within just 15 days, her students began reading three-letter Consonant–Vowel–Consonant (CVC) words. “I thought I had taught only six sounds,” she recalls, “but my students were reading more than 30 CVC words fluently. I was amazed.”
The biggest change wasn’t just in reading ability. It was in confidence. Children who once hesitated now raised their hands. They stopped depending on memorisation or Hindi translations and began decoding words on their own.
“If phonics is taught regularly and in the right sequence, the results are remarkable,” she reflects. “Seeing the enthusiasm and progress of my students makes every effort worthwhile.”
This shift matters deeply in a country like India, where learning gaps appear early. According to ASER 2024, only 23.4% of Grade 3 students in India can read a Grade 2 level text. This gap reflects not a lack of effort by teachers or students, but a systemic challenge in how reading has been taught.
Global research consistently shows that systematic phonics instruction is one of the strongest enablers of early reading, especially in multilingual contexts like India. It gives children tools to figure out new words on their own, a skill that can shape a student’s chances of higher education, meaningful work, and participation in a globalised world.
Ms. Monika’s journey is a powerful testament that when teachers are supported with the right training and resources, transformation follows even within large classrooms and systemic constraints. Through phonics, her students are not just learning to read, they are discovering the confidence and skills to thrive as independent readers.
A snippet of Peepul Phonics Guide.
This article is authored by Tanya Jain, a Project Associate at Peepul working closely on Teacher Professional Development for Municipal Corporation of Delhi Schools.
