Asian Journal of Education and Social Studies

Foundational literacy and numeracy (FLN) in early primary years are globally recognized as prerequisites for lifelong learning, and are a central priority of India’s NEP 2020 and the NIPUN Bharat Mission. This study assesses teachers’ perceptions of the effectiveness of SCERT Odisha’s FLN workbooks and examines whether these perceptions vary by gender and years of teaching experience. A descriptive survey design was used with 60 teachers selected through multi-stage sampling. Data were collected via bilingual printed questionnaires and analysed using descriptive and non-parametric statistical techniques. Hence, the research approach was quantitative. The study found that female teachers consistently rated the FLN workbooks more positively than male teachers across all foundational literacy and numeracy skills. Similarly, mid-career teachers (10 – 30 years) were more positive about the FLN workbooks while teachers with 0 -10 years of experience and more than 30 years of experience were more conservative in their evaluations. However, upon statistical treatment, the differences were not found to be significant for most FLN skills. This study concludes that SCERT Odisha’s FLN workbooks are effective tools for developing foundational literacy and numeracy. Findings suggest that differentiated, gender-responsive, and experience-sensitive teacher training may enhance the impact of FLN workbooks, contributing to the broader goals of the NIPUN Bharat mission.