The ninth Annual Status of Education Report (ASER 2013), released in New Delhi on 15 January 2014, presents mixed progress by primary education in rural India. ASER is the largest annual household survey focussing on the status of schooling and basic learning of children in rural India. Facilitated by Pratham, a non-government organization, the ASER survey is conducted in each rural district by local organizations, and institutions. ASER 2013 reached 550 districts andclose to 16,000 villages, 3.3 lakh households and 6 lakh children in the 3 to 16 age group.
Each year, ASER finds out whether children in rural India go to school, whether they can read simple text and whether they can do basic arithmetic. In 2005, 2007 and then every year since 2009, ASER has also included a visit to one government school in each sampled village.
Since the implementation of the RTE Act in 2010, school visits in ASER have included indicators of compliance with the norms and standards specified in the Right to Education Act that are easy to measure. In 2013, ASER visited 14,724 government schools.
According to the 2013 report, enrolment in the 6 to 14 age group continues to be high, with more than 96% of children enrolled in school a percentage that has been maintained for the fifth consecutive year.
The proportion of out of school girls in the 11 to 14 age group has declined from 6% in 2012 to 5.5% in 2013. The greatest progress is visible in Uttar Pradesh, where this percentage dropped from 11.5% in 2012 to 9.4% in 2013. However, in Rajasthan the proportion of out-of-school girls aged 11-14 rose for the second year in a row, from 8.9% in 2011 to 11.2% in 2012, and to 12.1% in 2013.
Nationally, there is a slight increase over 2012 in private school enrolment. The proportion of children taking paid private tuition classes has also increased slightly over the previous year. For the age group 6 to 14, there has been a steady increase in private school enrolment from 18.7% in 2006 to 29% in 2013. There is a slight increase in private school enrolment, from 28.3% in 2012 to 29% in 2013.
At the all India level, for standard III, the proportion of children able to read at least a standard I level paragraph has risen slightly from 38.8% in 2012 to 40.2% in 2013. The increase is mainly from improvements among private school children. Among standard III students in government schools, the proportion of children able to read standard I level text remains unchanged from 2012 at around 32%. States which show steady improvement in reading ability among standard III students.
However, no change has been observed since last year’s survey in the proportion of standard III children who are able to solve a two-digit subtraction with borrowing. This level of arithmetic is part of the curriculum for standard II in most states. In 2010, 33.2% children of standard III in government schools could at least do subtraction, as compared to 47.8% in private schools. The gap between children in government and private schools has widened over time. In 2013, 18.9% of standard III students in government schools were able to do basic subtraction or more, compared to 44.6% of children in standard III in private schools. Despite these differences, overall levels across the board are worryingly low.
For the first time, ASER 2013 measured the amount families pay for a child’s private tutoring. Nationally, 68.4% of standard I to V government school students who go to private tutors pay `100 or less per month. Among private school students of standard I to V, 36.7% pay `100 or less per month and the same proportion pay between `101 and `200 per month for private tuition.
The proportion of schools with a total enrolment of 60 students or less has increased steadily since 2010, from 27.3% in 2010 to 33.1% in 2013. This means that almost a third of all government primary schools in India are ‘small schools.’ In Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Meghalaya, Manipur and Mizoram this figure is higher than 60%. Eight states show an increase of more than 10% in the proportion of small schools in the period since 2010.
The guarantee of education is meaningless without satisfactory learning. There are serious implications for India’s equity and growth if basic learning outcomes do not improve soon, the report says. Since 2012, the policy framework in India for elementary education is changing. The focus is shifting to learning outcomes. As the 12th Five Year Plan document – in its chapter on education – places the greatest emphasis on improving learning outcomes at all levels, additional guidelines are being issued by ‘Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan’ for the planning process for 2014-15 school year, which directs states and union territories to plan and implement interventions to ensure learning enhancement. The challenges ahead relate to planning, implementation and tracking by states. Given the changing priorities in education policy and the shift in focus to learning outcomes, it is hoped that this detailed and exhaustive survey of children’s education in rural Indian will have greater progress to report
