With material from the National Literacy Mission (NLM), TCS provides computers with the CBT software free of cost at dedicated teaching centres in mostly rural and some urban areas.

Innovation is the key of this programme. For instance, Tamil is not a phonetic language so the letters of the alphabet are capable of multiple interpretations, depending on the context. So the software was rewritten with these parameters. At the same time, feedback and suggestions from the students of the pilot project were also incorporated.

Besides innovative use of technology, this programme is also unusual for another reason - it is based on the proven premise that adults are more comfortable learning words directly instead of starting with the letters of the alphabet. Explains Satish Kumar, a Chennai-based project coordinator who helped develop the Tamil version: "Reading is the primary skill we focus on. In about 40 hours, a basic vocabulary of 300 to 500 words can be covered comfortably - enough to read newspapers." Kumar travels extensively to keep an eye on the many rural centres under his supervision.

The programme first started in a few villages of the Medak, Guntur and Vizag districts of Andhra Pradesh. Over a period of 15 weeks (thrice a week, two hours a day), the entire set of Telugu letters was covered over a range of 500 words. In 17 lessons, students were able to grasp word combinations, phrases and sentences and eventually read posters, billboards and newspapers.

Developing similar software for Tamil and Hindi to start off-with other languages to follow subsequently-was the next logical step. At the moment, there are 40 Tamil centres and this number is likely to go up to 50 by March this year. The Hindi program software too is ready and is soon going to be tested through a pilot project. The entire focus of the software is on being user-friendly. Even the educational qualifications of passing class X are enough for the facilitator who is more often than not provided by local NGOs with which TCS is partnering the programme. TCS trains the facilitator and also provides the hardware and software.

About the only foreseeable drawback under the programme is that a class can only accommodate between 15 and 20 students who can comfortably view a computer screen, as they would a television. Moreover, power shutdowns and voltage fluctuations endemic to the rural areas too cause problems.

Although the programme is open to everybody, it has been found that 98 per cent of those who have enrolled so far for the Tamil project have been women. Explains Rama Mahalingam, project designer for the Tamil Literacy Project, "It could be partly because learners feel awkward in a heterogeneous crowd. Dropouts do happen but only within the first 10 days - after that, they don't leave till they have finished the programme. A great majority of the women who come do so because they say it makes them feel empowered. They want to know about bus routes, wages, brand names, television serials, cinema billboards, basic calculations and their children's education. They always tell us that learning to read has made them more confident and less scared of facing their problems."

And the results of this programme are already showing. For instance, Sundari, in her mid-30s, sells flowers for a living. She made time to attend the computer programme after wrapping up the day's work quickly and "not even stopping for a cup of tea". There was only one reason why Sundari wanted to attend the classes - to educate herself and gain enough confidence so that she could speak up at the council meetings about long-pending problems like water shortage in the area where she stays.

Sundari called her coordinator last week, sounding rather excited about having made her first public demand for water. She also wanted her teacher's address. "I want to write a letter to you," she said.

— WFS