School Transformation and Empowerment Project(STEP) is an initiative of MANTRA Social Services - Bangalore, Through STEP, we strive to promote and improve quality of education in schools serving the socioeconomically disadvantaged population of the country. In the current academic year(2014-2015), MANTRA engaged with 9 schools for the first stage of STEP with a need assessment and report for clarifying and aligning to school’s purpose. This report captures our work on the ground hitherto – highlighting our activities in Year 1 of STEP,our key learning and strategic intent going forward.

1. Our journey to transform schools and empower stakeholders, one step at a time
[ Annual Report 2014-15 ]
‘School Transformation and Empowerment Project’ (STEP) is an initiative of MANTRA Social Services – Bangalore

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3. 1 STEP Introduction
What is STEP?
STEP Project Frame work
STEP Vision, Mission and 3 year Goals
IN THIS REPORT
2 STEP Project Details (May 2014 - April 2015)
Key activities
- Stage 1 Fact File & Key Learning
- Stage 2 Fact File
- Stage 2 Key Activities - Progress & Outcomes
3 STEP Call To Action
Our Team & Core Values
Our Supporters
How Can You Help?
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5. FOREWORD
MANTRA Social Services - Bangalore is a social enterprise registered under Section 25 of
Companies Act. Founded by a team of committed and passionate individuals in 2012 and
growing in strength, MANTRA believes in the need for an association of like-minded people
and organizations/movements to inspire action and sustain change efforts.
Through the School Transformation and Empowerment Project(STEP), we strive to promote
quality education in schools serving the socio-economically disadvantaged population of
the country. This report captures our work on the ground hitherto – highlighting the first
year of STEP, our key learning and strategic intent going forward. The journey so far has
only strengthened our conviction in the cause and belief in the potential of STEP to evolve
into a scalable solution.
Hope this report gives you an imperative to join us in this journey for education equity.
Regards
Team MANTRA
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6. STEP Introduction
School Transformation and Empowerment Project
(STEP) is an initiative of MANTRA, designed to improve and
promote quality in existing under-resourced schools, serving
the socio-economically disadvantaged localities in the city.
Through a multi staged School Improvement Framework and
holistic approach, STEP intends to bring in coherence to
school-wide activities aimed at re-defining and improving the
quality of outcomes expected at partner schools.
In the current academic year (2014-2015), MANTRA
engaged with 9 schools for the first stage of STEP of need
assessment and observation report. Following this, we
entered into a two year, focused partnership with 3 low-fee
private schools and 3 government run schools to plan
and implement the next stage of STEP.
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7. The framework* is flexible and first stage of STEP will determine if the partner school will go
through each stage and module or if it will pick particular tools that are relevant to their needs.
Each of the school profile presents varying degrees of advantages and challenges(of cost,
human capital, capacity, political will and efficacy), in turn aiding innovation and integration of
tools/processes that will enable cost-effective implementation of STEP into similar schools in
coming years.
* MANTRA currently refers to the ‘School Improvement Planning Framework’ (© TDA) which
is the developed by the TDA - Training and Development Agency for Schools-UK
STEP Project Framework
The project framework*
sets out STEP planning
process in three stages -
Prepare and engage,
Identify objectives and
Ensure successful
outcomes – with
modules in each stage
focusing on particular
aspects of school
transformation.
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8. Holistic approach towards energizing the
school ecosystem
We realize the context of each school is different and our
strategic intent is to devise scalable & replicable solutions
for our schools through the following steps:
A thorough diagnosis of each school to zero-in
on underlying factors contributing to the school’s
current status(of learning outcomes) and to
question status quo
A design-thinking approach to “connect –engage
– integrate – sustain” change efforts involving all
four stakeholders - teachers, students, school
leadership and parent community
Collaborating on an action plan with goals and
sub-goals to create ‘conditions for effectiveness’
across seven key-levers that influence the quality
school’s outcomes
STEP APPROACH

9. To engage with underachieving schools(and its stakeholders) through a multi-stage
school improvement framework that enables successful outcomes and empowers
such schools to serve as pathway of opportunity for every child
Innovate and integrate system-wide processes and tools that equip
stakeholders(school leaders, parents, teachers and students), enhance existing
improvement activities and sustain change efforts to ensure successful outcomes
beyond the two-year intervention cycle
STEP VISION
Every school delivers what a child deserves - quality education
STEP MISSION
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10. To impact 16 schools and 6400 children through STEP by 2017,
ensuring that each school
– delivers quality affordable education in the face of demanding environment and constraints,
through better processes, tools and school-wide systems
– guarantees improved learning outcome that rely less on curricular or infrastructural change
and more on teacher efficacy and methodology
To be engaged with a wide array of schools and build a passionate
core team that leads to
– replicable and cost-effective implementation, enabling STEP expansion to impact 92 schools
(and in turn 36800 children) by 2020
– creating proof points and raising the bar for quality of outcomes across similar schools, in turn
driving system level changes for affordable education
Benchmarking academic outcomes and competency framework for
teacher effectiveness in partner schools
STEP - Project Goals: 3 years
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11. YEAR 2 STRATEGIC INTENT
#1
Pilot the use of STEP School Status Rubric* as a school self-evaluation
tool and in turn identify the merits and key gaps in using this for under-
served private/government schools
#2
Pilot and evaluate various personalized tools and processes that enables
such schools as our partner schools to meet quality standards and outcomes
indicated by national or state level quality accreditation frameworks*
#3
Identify an effective and reliable measurement and analysis system for
tracking progress and gaps in STEP intervention and it’s effect on key
stakeholders
#4
Benchmark academic outcomes for students and competencies for
teacher effectiveness in similar schools through ongoing evaluation and
analysis of teaching-learning process in partner schools
*MANTRA’s STEP School Status Rubric refers to the SQAAF( School Quality Assessment and Accreditation Form) and KSQAAC (Karnataka
School Quality Assessment and Accreditation Council) list various indicators and sub-indicators for quality through measurement rubrics

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14. Stage-1: Prepare and Engage
of Need Analysis
To ‘Prepare and Engage’, stage 1 involved a need analysis focused on gathering qualitative and
quantitative information across various parameters affecting the school. It also gives us the
opportunity to connect and start building relationships with the school team.
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15. STEP Stage-1 Fact File
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16. Stage 1: Key Learning at School Level (all schools)
1. VISION &
MISSION
2. TEACHING-
LEARNING
PROCESS
3. PARENT
ENGAGEMENT
Schools do not have a
defined vision-mission that
drives day-to-day activities
Teachers pre-dominantly
use text-book based and
rote methods for teaching
Schools have some form of
interface with the parent
community
However, the parent
community is low on self-
esteem; they lack clarity
regarding student's
learning outcomes and
quality in teaching
However, in reflection,
School Leader is able to
share in a compelling way
his/her vision for quality
education and is self-
driven
However, School leader
and teachers believe that
with adequate space,
resources and additional
support, new methods
can be implemented
Our interviews and observations highlight significant gaps that must be addressed to enable any
plan for improvement in the school system. There are six factors that have been identified and
prioritized.
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17. Stage 1: Key Learning - Government Vs. Private School
5. ONGOING TRAINING
& SUPPORT
Skilled teachers capable
of imparting quality
lessons are a part of the
school system. There is
still a gap in the
effectiveness of teaching-
learning experience
process for students
Government schools
have formal feedback
mechanism to analyze
need for improvement,
however there is no
process for setting goals
or tracking progress.
There is adequate
training and support in
government schools.
However there is a lack
of follow-up and follow
through mechanism for
successful
implementation
6. TEACHER
SKILL Vs. WILL
4. QUALITY &
IMPROVEMENT PLAN
The private schools
lacked any formal
feedback mechanism
to analyze school’s
current status and
need for
improvement.
Private school teachers
received minimal or no
training support. Apart
from candid feedback
from HMs there wasn’t
any additional support
relevant to their needs
Most schools place
untrained teachers on
roll, who lack strong
teaching skills. They
seemed willing to learn
but the pressure of
completing syllabus
overpowers their will
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18. Stage 2: Identify Objectives & Ensure Successful Outcomes
The next stage of STEP
in each schools started
with ‘Identifying
Objectives’ and
‘Prioritizing Solutions’
Based on the first stage
of STEP and the key
factors identified,
MANTRA and school
team determine
activities in each
module or will pick
particular tools that are
relevant to their needs.
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19. STEP Stage-2
Fact File
The focus during Stage 2 was on immersion at the school-site - to be a part of the school team and strengthen
relationships with stakeholders This helped identify key levers for intervention, both inside and outside the
classroom. This also helped gauge the 'learning potential' of the school team to prioritize solutions and plan
delivery and evaluation of interventions.
Quality time was also spent on strengthening MANTRA's core team and competencies through focused learning and partnerships.This
further helped the team in developing and prioritizing solutions. This also provided scope for innovating tools and processesthat will be
integral in STEP intervention in the long term. 19

20. “Management is doing
things right;
leadership is doing
the right things.”
Peter F. Drucker
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21. Stage 2: School Leadership Engagement - Key Activities
#1
Ongoing discussions with school leader, involving school self-
evaluation and reflection debriefs on School Status and School Culture
Weekly work-time with Government school HMs - modeling processes
and tools for overall efficiency of the school as an organization
Two days of Sharing and Collaboration platform for School leaders to
co-create vision, goals and action plan for quality improvement and
collective action next academic year
#2
#3
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22. Stage 2: School Leadership Engagement - Progress & Outcomes
100%
School HMs Strongly Agreed that they had opportunities
to learn and grow as a part of MANTRA's intervention
School Leaders were engaged on
building effective processes
during planned activities
Government School Leaders, Cluster Resource Persons(CRP) and
Block Resource Persons(BRP) attended the session and
expressed it was purposeful use of their time
100%
100%
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23. Strategic Intent for Next Stage (Year 2) – For School Level Change
100%
STEP school leaders will craft a strong
vision-mission for their school AND
he/she will display the will, skill and
authority to achieve the same
100%
STEP school partner schools will
implement school-wide systems that will
drive a positive school culture and
improvement efforts with a sense of
urgency
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24. “Tell me and I forget,
teach me and I may
remember, involve me
and I learn.”
Benjamin Franklin
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25. Stage 2: Teacher Engagement - Key Activities
96 Hoursof fun-filled interaction and
orientation to STEP for all teachers
(110 teachers across 6 schools)
> 97%
Teacher attendance at sessions and
over 90% teachers expressed
visible excitement about their
school’s partnership with MANTRA
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26. 12 Hours of training on a high-need 'English Reading
Improvement Program' for target classrooms and
6 weeks’ ongoing support, across all 6 schools
> 90%
teachers reported positive outcomes,
with improved classroom engagement
and visible changes in willingness to
learn from students
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Stage 2: Teacher Engagement - Key Activities

27. 48 Hoursof rigorous knowledge-skills training,
focused on behavior management and
pedagogy followed by 6 week ongoing support
- for target group of teachers at private schools.
100% attendance of target group of teachers.
Participant teachers reported strong
knowledge & use of learned skills and reported
increased attentiveness of students
88%
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Stage 2: Teacher Engagement - Key Activities

28. 16
Hoursof workshop in each private partner school on
Planning Purposefully, giving teachers opportunity to
collaborate at planning level and teaching-learning
practices within classrooms.
95% attendance of target group of teachers
Participant teachers demonstrated
new methods of planning to better
meet the needs of their students
100%
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Stage 2: Teacher Engagement - Key Activities

29. Strategic Intent for Next Stage (Year 2) – For Effective Teaching-Learning
> 80%
teachers will step into the classrooms
with a vision for student
learning and will be informed by
academic benchmarks relevant to current
learning levels and a long-term plan
to meet the goals.
> 80%
of identified(high-need)
classrooms will have successful
academic intervention aimed at
achieving MLL
(Minimum Learning Levels) in Reading
and Math
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30. Photo collage “Never doubt that a
small group of thoughtful,
committed citizens can
change the world;
Indeed, it's the only thing
that ever has.”
Margaret Mead
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31. Stage 2: Community/Stakeholder Engagement
Key Activities Progress and Outcomes
Restructuring the School development and
Monitoring committee.
Planning periodic and structured SDMC
meetings
Infrastructure support through community
engagement
Currently all the SDMCs are working at less than 50% of
their specified strength. We have invited interested
parents to be part of the committee for the school
improvement plan.
Working with School leaders to provide structure to
SDMC meetings. Getting a year long schedule for SDMC
meetings and also having agenda for SDMC meetings
Got a separate Library and a computer lab set up in
Government Urdu School. Also got KP Agrahara Govt
School Painted and repaired.
Strategic Intent for Year 2 - For Empowered SDMC and Effective Community Engagement
100% SDMC will have at least 10 active members. SDMC members will Interface with and involve
parents and community/external stakeholders to drive accountability and catalyze change efforts
Provide additional support with personalized processes and tools to build accountability, track
progress and inform critical decisions for effective use of Library and Computer labs.
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32. Develop Strategic Plan and begin STEP
intervention in 4 partner schools
Approach external stakeholders, including
NGOs, Universities and government
bodies for strategic partnership
Annual report and Team
MANTRA step-back to review
strategic plan
Pre-work for STEP partner
schools (2015-2016)
An overview of MANTRA’s timeline for the past academic year (May 2014 – April 2015)
WE ARE HERE
THE YEAR GONE BY
Pre-work for STEP project
NEED ANALYSIS of
identified affordable
private schools
Develop and prioritize solutions for
each partner school.
Pilot programs both inside and outside
the classroom; including teacher
training and reading program
MoU to pilot STEP
intervention in 3
Government run
schools
May - June 2014
July-Sept 2014
Oct - Nov 2014 Jan - March 2015
April 2015
Crowd-funding efforts to
sustain STEP activities
Collaborate with school leadership to plan
delivery and evaluation of various
interventions.
Identify and leverage stakeholder (parents
& community) to bring in accountability
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34. An ex-Teach for India fellow (2009-11),
Anoop is an engineer who pursued his
search of equity in education. He has been
on the program staff at TFI experience for 2
years and has worked with Isha Vidhya
Rural Schools before joining the team at
MANTRA.
A management graduate from Kellogg School
of Management, Charag was previously the
CSR coordinator with Bharath Petroleum
(BPCL), Mumbai. He undertook 2-year long
Teach for India fellowship to explore the
grass-root issues in school education.
Khushboo is a management graduate from Tata Institute of
Social Science (TISS, Mumbai) and has 5+ years of work
experience across IT, Healthcare and development sector. She
has handled varied roles in product management, strategy,
operations and marketing.
Rishi is a co-founder of MANTRA and is an incorrigible
technology enthusiast. A Software Architect with around
9+ years’ of work experience, he has initiated and
architected multiple solutions that are related to Search
Engines, ETL and open source technologies.
Santosh is a mechanical engineer, who chased his passion of improving
quality in school education. A co-founder at MANTRA, Santosh has 7+
years of work experience across IT and development sector. He was a Teach
for India fellow from the first cohort and next, he worked as a Program
Manager at Janaagraha centre for Citizenship and Democracy, Bangalore.
OUR TEAM
An engineering graduate, Medha chose to join
Teach for India fellowship to pursue her
passion for education equity. She has worked
with INKTalks, Google India and Gray
Matters Capital on internet awareness and
blended learning program.

35. We are committed to
learning and continuous
improvement to achieve
excellence. The process
takes time; we do not give
up. There is no such thing as
a mistake if we learn from it
We see and make efficient use of
resources everywhere.
We proactively seek out creative
solutions to overcome challenges in
resource constrained environments.
We take care of ourselves and those around us. We
maintain respect for each other and the communities
we serve. We value different experiences and
perspectives.
OUR CORE VALUES
Our experiences this year on the ground has helped us identify 3 core values
that drive our actions.
RESOURCEFU
LNESS
LEARNING
EMPATHY
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36. Sanjay Purohit,
CEO and Managing Director at
EdgeVerve Systems Limited,
a wholly owned subsidiary of
Infosys Limited
Sudhir K Joshi,
Ex-Director, Finance,
Bharath Petroleum Corp. Limited
Swati and Ramesh
Ramanathan,
Founders, Janaagraha Centre
for Citizenship and Democracy,
a non-profit focused on
transforming quality of
life in Urban India
Vishal Poddar,
Vice President,
JP Morgan Chase,
Hong Kong
OUR SUPPORTERS

37. OUR CROWD-FUND SUPPORTERS
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With 135 supporters, MANTRA raised INR 5 Lakhs through Crowdfunding.
Thilak
Saily

38. Do you believe in the social impact of
quality education?
Do you think that an association of
like minded people can actually
change the course of history?
Do you feel that the time and
the opportunity is right here
and now?
Join our movement to ensure that every child in this country gets access to quality
education. Share our vision. Help us grow & function and help us keep our momentum.
Raised
INR 10,00,000
Goal
INR 32,00,000
HOW CAN YOU HELP?


39. Support a School
INR 5,00,000
Ways,
you can help
Support projects within
partner schools
Connect us to like-minded
individuals
Create corpus Fund
> INR 50,00,000
e.g. library in classrooms,
computer labs etc

40. santosh@mantra4change.com
khushboo@mantra4change.com
(91)-810 586 1047
(91)-9731 789 611
For feedback and further details
Lets talk about solutions..!
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