Forty-two percent of children aged 14 to 18 in rural India cannot read simple English sentences, while more than half of them struggle with simple division problems, according to the Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) 2023. Released on Wednesday.

The ASER 2023 ‘Beyond Basics’ survey was conducted in 28 districts across 26 states, involving a total of 34,745 youth in the age group of 14-18 years. One rural district was surveyed in each major state, except Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, where two rural districts were surveyed.

The annual report published by the Pratham Foundation also found that more than half of students aged 14-18 struggle with separation anxiety.

“About 25 per cent of people in this age group still cannot read Class 2 level text fluently in their regional language. More than half of the sections deal with division (3-digit to 1-digit) problems. Only 43.3 percent of children aged 14-18 years are able to solve such problems correctly. This skill is generally expected in classes 3 and 4.

“Just over half can read sentences in English (57.3). Of those who can read sentences in English, nearly three-quarters can tell their meaning (73.5 percent),” the report said.

ASER reports are also used by the government while making policies.

Across all enrollment categories, women (76 percent) performed better than men (70.9 percent) in reading Class 2 level text in their regional language. In contrast, men outperform their female counterparts in arithmetic and English reading.

The report said that about 45 percent of the students surveyed could calculate the number of hours a child sleeps based on the time they go to bed at night and wake up in the morning.

In another everyday task of measuring an object with a scale, 85 percent of the people surveyed could correctly calculate the length of an object if it was placed at the ‘0’ mark on the ruler.

But when the object was moved and placed elsewhere on the ruler, less than 40 percent of people could answer correctly. The report said that two-thirds of the youth surveyed (65.1 per cent) were able to read the functional instructions on the packets of ORS solution.

According to the report, low levels of fundamental numeracy affect young people’s ability to deal with everyday calculations where they need to apply measurements in practical situations or use the unitary method, or even simple financial calculations. (managing budgets, applying discounts or doing calculations) also has to be done. Interest rates or repayment of loan.

“A significant portion of the 14-18 population needs basic literacy and numeracy efforts, not only to perform better at school but also for everyday needs. Data from ASER 2023 indicate that almost a quarter of young people aged 14-18 may need to build foundational literacy and numeracy.

“The NEP (National Education Policy) 2020 recognizes the need to ‘catch up’ in terms of those who are left behind. Thus, if they do not already exist, programs can be established to help students in eighth grade and higher grades who are falling behind academically.”

ASER is a nationwide citizen-led household survey that provides a snapshot of the schooling and learning status of children in rural India.

First implemented in 2005, the ‘Basic’ ASER survey was conducted annually until 2014 and changed to an alternate-year cycle in 2016.

The ‘Basic’ ASER collects information on enrollment in preschool and school for children aged three to 16, and a one-on-one assessment of children aged five to 16 to understand their basic reading and arithmetic abilities. Evaluates by doing.

In the intervening years, the ASER survey sheds in-depth light on various aspects of children’s schooling and learning in rural India.

The 2023 survey explored the following domains: what activities India’s youth are currently engaged in, whether they have basic and applied reading and mathematics abilities, their digital awareness and skills, whether they have access to a smartphone, What do they use smartphones for, and what simple tasks can they do on their smartphones? “Trends in basic education have remained relatively unchanged over the past decade. Although the National Achievement Survey (NAS) and ASER use different metrics and methods to assess learning, both point to the fact that the basic learning levels of primary school children need significant improvement.

“NEP 2020 also clearly states the urgent need to ensure that by Class III, children have acquired basic reading and arithmetic skills,” the report said.

(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed – PTI)