Govt school admissions score high, but learning levels fail to make grade

The impact of Covid is palpable, given India recorded a sharp decline in children’s basic ability to read and calculate, reveals data from the Annual Status of Education Report (Rural) 2022, or ASER 2022.

The proportion of children in standard VIII having the ability to read standard II level text declined from 76.5 per cent in 2012 to 69.6 per cent in 2022. Among students in government schools, the fall was from 73.4 per cent to 66.2 per cent in the same period.

Government schools, which historically have lower learning levels, witnessed a higher decline in learning ability during this period. 

The share of children in government and private schools in standard VIII possessing the ability to do division sums dropped from 48.1 per cent to 44.7 per cent between 2012 and 2022.

“Catch-up interventions are urgently needed. Learning losses incurred during the school closure period highlighted the need for remedial programmes in a way that was not as urgently felt before,” said Rukmini Banerji, chief executive officer, Pratham Foundation, a non-governmental organisation that conducts the ASER survey.   

However, the poor quality of education has not deterred parents from enrolling their children in government schools.

The ASER report said that the proportion of children enrolled in government schools rose from 65.6 per cent in 2018 to 72.9 per cent in 2022. It was 64.9 per cent in 2014. 

“The ASER 2022 figures show that the increase in out-of-school numbers during 2020-21 was a temporary phenomenon caused by uncertainty and possibly a lag in recording enrolments. The proportion of not currently enrolled six- to 14-year-olds is down to 1.6 per cent… the lowest we have seen in the decade since the Right to Education Act came into effect,” said Wilima Wadhwa, director, ASER Centre.

The 2022 survey has covered around 700,000 children from 616 districts.

Even though government enrolments have increased, expenditure on education may not have declined as the incidence of taking private tuition is up.

In 2022, the proportion of children taking paid tuition classes from classes I-VIII increased to 30.5 per cent, from 26.4 per cent in 2018.

Declining abilities, rising facilities

At the national level, school facilities have improved. However, a few states are still stragglers.

Of the 28 states analysed by ASER, nine states, including Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala, and Maharashtra, reported a decline in the availability of drinking water in schools since 2010.

Twelve states, including Haryana, Kerala, and Maharashtra, reported a decline in the availability of girls’ toilets in schools since 2018.