Central Square Foundation

Central Square Foundation (CSF)) is a non-profit established in 2012 with the aim of transforming India's school education system and improving learning outcomes for all school-going children, particularly those from low-income communities. Rather than delivering services directly, it acts as a catalytic enabler, working with state governments and other stakeholders on system-level reforms that carry evidence from innovation through policy to practice. Its approach is grounded in rigorous research and high-quality assessments, with an emphasis on sustainable, system-led change.

CSF's work is organised around five focus areas: foundational literacy and numeracy (FLN), EdTech, early childhood education, school governance, and support for high potential students. Its FLN programme helps state governments design and execute statewide missions targeting universal foundational literacy and numeracy by grade 3; the foundation has collaborated with 11 state governments on such missions. The EdTech initiative applies technology to student learning at home and in school, with a stated focus on integrating artificial intelligence to improve educational outcomes. Technical domains across the organisation include EdTech, artificial intelligence in education, learning assessments, evidence-based education research, and foundational literacy and numeracy pedagogy.

The foundation drives learning impact at scale in 14 Indian states, working within school education (K-12), early childhood education, and public-sector education systems. Its stated orientation is innovation and policy-to-practice work, with a mission-driven focus on equity for children from low-income communities. Further information is available at https://centralsquarefoundation.org/.