All Children Reading: Grand Challenge for Development Project Summary

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, UNESCO reported that 387 million children were estimated to lack basic reading skills. Between the COVID-19 pandemic and worldwide migration crises, that number has risen to 584 million. At highest risk are those living in low-resource contexts, especially children with disabilities. Without new solutions, we risk leaving the most vulnerable children behind their peers in literacy.

Launched in 2011, All Children Reading: A Grand Challenge for Development (ACR GCD) is a partnership between USAID, World Vision, and the Australian Government that advances EdTech innovation and research to improve reading outcomes for marginalized children in low resource contexts. ACR GCD’s mission is in:

• Sourcing new solutions through investing in the most promising EdTech innovations and approaches for addressing gaps and barriers to child literacy;
• Testing new ideas by partnering with leading education researchers to measure the impact of EdTech innovations, and;
• Scaling what works by advancing innovations with the greatest potential to improve reading outcomes for more children in low resource contexts.

For over a decade, ACR GCD has catalyzed innovation by assuming the risks of research and development to support and strengthen innovators who have developed open source, born accessible and scalable EdTech solutions and tools to increase literacy. As a grand challenge, ACR GCD has also established a much-needed focus on inclusive education and technology aid and has grown to be one of the largest innovation funds focused on reading for children with disabilities, with more than $9.4 million invested.

The Grand Challenge concluded in September 2023.