Scaling Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN) Camps: A Data-Driven Model for Bridging Educational Divides and Promoting Social Cohesion in Punjab, Pakistan

• In Event: Foundational Literacy, Numeracy, and Competency Assessment

Proposal

Learning poverty and the persistence of Out-of-School Children (OOSC) remain among the most pressing global education challenges, and in Pakistan their scale and consequences are particularly severe. These challenges go beyond access or achievement; they reflect deep social divides that perpetuate inequality, exclusion, and fragility. At the same time, emerging innovations show that education can bridge such divides, fostering opportunity and social cohesion. This paper examines applied research on the design, implementation, and outcomes of large-scale Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN) Camps conducted under the Punjab School Education Department’s PMIU-PESRP initiative (2023-2025). By analyzing this intervention within global debates on learning poverty, equity, and peacebuilding, the study demonstrates how remedial education, when scaled effectively, can foster inclusion and strengthen trust in public institutions.
Pakistan faces an education challenge of considerable scale, but one that also highlights the urgency and opportunity for reform. According to the World Bank (2022), 77% of children in the country, whether in or out of school, are learning poor, unable to read and comprehend an age-appropriate text by age ten. In Punjab, 65% of school-going children do not reach minimum proficiency in reading English by the end of primary school. Pakistan’s learning poverty rate is 16.3 percentage points higher than the South Asian average and 19.5 percentage points higher than the average for lower-middle-income countries. Gender adds complexity: boys are more likely to be enrolled in school, yet girls more often achieve minimum proficiency by the end of primary education (World Bank, 2022). These dynamics underscore both the scale of the challenge and the potential impact of targeted interventions to promote inclusion and equity.
The challenge of OOSC further highlights these divides. Punjab alone has an estimated 9.6 million OOSC (7th Annual School Census, Government of Punjab, 2023). Girls constitute 52% of this population, mostly from poor, rural households. Age-based data show that exclusion worsens over time; among 5-10-year-olds, 2.96% drop out and 21.19% have never enrolled; among 11-13-year-olds, dropout rises to 9.5% and never-enrollment to 11.55%; and among 14-16-year-olds, dropout reaches 21.87% with 18.12% never enrolled. More than half of OOSC in primary and middle school belong to the poorest income quintile. Rural areas account for at least 70% of OOSC across all levels, rising to 80% at primary level, though migration has shifted some exclusion to urban slums. These figures underline the need for interventions that address not only access but also structural inequities.
In response, the PMIU-PESRP launched FLN Camps as a large-scale remedial intervention. The program was based on the Teaching at the Right Level (TaRL) methodology, evaluated extensively in similar regions (Banerjee et al., 2016; Teaching at the Right Level Africa, 2020; Pratham, 2023). Adapted to Punjab’s context, the model aimed to reduce learning poverty, reintegrate OOSC, and create more inclusive school environments.
The intervention served children aged 5-9 during summer recess. A key innovation was grouping children by competency in Urdu, English, and Mathematics, rather than age or grade. This design minimized stigma and allowed children with diverse prior experiences, including those who had never been to school, to progress together. Teacher training followed a cascading model, beginning with Master Trainers and Assistant Education Officers, who then mentored camp teachers throughout implementation.
The initiative scaled from 2,050 camps in 5 districts (2023) to 6,060 in 12 districts (2025), reaching 443,440 children, including 94,528 OOSC. Participation in disadvantaged areas improved through community mobilization, School Council engagement, and teacher incentives, strengthening trust in public education.
Monitoring and evaluation employed a mixed-methods design, integrating digital data collection, standardized competency-based assessments, and structured classroom observations. Endline findings showed learning gains of 5-6 percentage points, surpassing global averages for similar remedial programs (Banerjee et al., 2016), and high retention among OOSC: of 35,046 enrolled in 2025, 28,402 completed the program. Beyond these quantitative outcomes, qualitative evidence revealed that camps fostered inclusive learning spaces where girls and boys, in-school and OOSC, learned side by side. This integration reduced stigma, fostered peer support, and strengthened families’ trust in state schools.
The challenge of OOSC further highlights these divides. Pedagogically, competency-based grouping shifted classroom dynamics from age-based hierarchies to flexible, inclusive learning, boosting confidence among slower learners. At the systems level, cascading teacher training and mentorship strengthened local professional capacity and addressed long-standing gaps in teacher support. Societally, the camps bridged divides between children with different schooling histories, fostered gender equity, and offered a model of schooling perceived by parents as responsive and inclusive. These outcomes illustrate how technical interventions can ripple outward, supporting broader goals of equity, cohesion, and peace.
Policy implications are equally notable. Integrating FLN Camps within provincial education strategies shows how short-term remedial initiatives can complement and reinforce long-term reforms rather than act as temporary fixes. The adoption of digital monitoring systems enhanced transparency, accountability, and responsiveness, contributing to greater public confidence in government-led efforts. These measures demonstrate the potential of proactive governance to address equity and access challenges, particularly where education systems must deliver both inclusion and social cohesion.
Overall, the Punjab FLN Camps provide evidence that targeted, well-designed interventions can generate meaningful progress. While learning poverty and OOSC remain pressing issues, this case demonstrates that data-driven, context-sensitive approaches can deliver measurable gains. Foundational education, when pursued with a focus on equity and cohesion, not only improves learning outcomes but also strengthens resilience and reduces social divides. Initiatives like the FLN Camps illustrate how education can contribute to social cohesion and lay the foundations for peaceful and inclusive futures.
This research argues that foundational learning is a peacebuilding endeavor. By enabling marginalized children to acquire literacy and numeracy, fostering inclusive classrooms where differences are bridged, and rebuilding trust between families and schools, education can lay the groundwork for more cohesive societies. In Pakistan, and in other low-resource, divided contexts, the lessons from Punjab demonstrate that even in the face of daunting statistics, innovation and commitment can yield pathways toward both learning and peace.

Authors

• Atique ur Rehman ., Program Monitoring and Implementation Unit - Punjab Education Sector Reform Program (PMIU - PESRP)

• Imtiaz Shahid, Programme Monitoring & Implementation Unit

• Safyan Jabbar

• Muhammad Usman Aziz, Programme Monitoring & Implementation Unit