Q. How do we measure learning achievements in school education?

A: Learning achievements are usually based on tests administered to students. These tests are standardised so that the results can be compared across groups of students. Consequently, there is a general preference for measurable indicators. This can lead to a certain inherent bias towards measurable aspects of school education. Intangible aspects or outcomes of learning may be neglected. Whether a child can calculate (say, multiply two numbers) or write a full sentence, etc., can be measured but does the child have a helpful attitude towards others, has internalise the needs of democracy or acquired a concern towards the natural environment through school education cannot be measured easily. Hence, many educationists (and philosophers) do not approve of these measurements of learning achievements. Though their concern is relevant, I take a slightly different view. Achievement of measurable indicators is also expected from students and these aspects are important for their lives and the society in which they live. Hence, these cannot be ignored, and whether the education system is capable of imparting these aspects of learning has to be assessed and corrective steps taken, if required. 

Though a few intangible aspects may be ignored in this measurement, we may consider whether there is any inherent conflict between measurable and intangible aspects of education in terms of achievements. If there are no major conflicts, the measurement of the former does not pose any problem for the latter. Adequate efforts need to be put in to develop indicators and ways of assessment of the so-called intangible aspects of learning. 

There is also another point that we have to consider in the context of the debate on whether to have examinations in the lower grades of school to ensure that children learn adequately. If such examinations and monitoring lead to the dropping-out of children from schools, it can be harmful. It is important for every child to get 8 – 10 years of schooling even if their learning outcomes are not very positive because the socialisation that is part of school education may be useful. For example, girls may delay their marriage and assert their reproductive rights if they complete school education. There are several such socially useful outcomes of schooling that are not directly related to academic achievements. 

Q. Teachers measure the learning of students in classes through various examinations. What is the need for national achievement surveys for this purpose? 

A: Ideally, there must be continuous and comprehensive assessments (CCAs) in each grade. These ensure that additional support is provided to those students who are not learning adequately. However, such CCAs are not carried out properly in many schools in India. Either such assessments are ignored or there is an overemphasis on the assessment of certain aspects of learning. For example, examinations may attempt to measure the outcomes of rote learning. Since many students drop out of school, there is a general reluctance to conduct examinations in the lower grades. Indeed, such examinations should not be used to eliminate students. In summary, there are not enough appropriate assessments of the learning of students in lower grades of schooling in India. 

Even if there is such an assessment in each classroom, there may be a need for national or state-level assessments for policy purposes. It may be necessary to allocate more public resources for specific purposes which are related to the quality of education. Learning assessments may be useful in this regard. 

Q. What is the extent of the learning deficiency in India? 

A: Some rough indicators of learning outcomes in rural areas are provided by periodical ASE Reports. A few indicators of those students who are between 14 ‑18 years of age from the latest report (2023) are as follows: (a) Nearly 25 percent cannot read a grade II level text; (b) Around 50 percent cannot do the division of numbers; and © Nearly 40 percent cannot read a sentence in English. 

However, ASE Reports have certain limitations. It is a sample survey from rural areas. It is carried out by a non-governmental organisation, and hence, it can be ignored (or even disapproved) by governments. National Achievement Survey’s (NAS) latest available report, which is based on 2021 data, informs that the national average marks in mathematics for grade X students is 220 out of 500. It is only 206 for science, 231 for social sciences, 277 for English and 260 for the language which is the medium of instruction. This is based on a compilation of data that is collected by different government agencies. These agencies have no incentive to underestimate learning. India is not a participant in any international assessments, such as PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment). 

Whether it is based on ASER or NAS, or based on the experience of teachers, one can say that the majority of students do not acquire a level of learning that is expected in each grade of school education in India. 

Q. What can be the connection between children’s attendance in school and their learning outcomes?

A: There may be a mutual relationship between these two. It is somewhat obvious that those who do not attend school regularly may not learn well, especially if they cannot get additional academic support at home. However, if children are not learning, they may lose interest in classroom interactions and this, in turn, can be the reason for their irregular attendance. 

Q: Learning achievements in India are not at a desirable level due to the ill-functioning schools, lack of teachers or because teachers do not do their jobs well – this is a widely-held view. Is it correct? 

 A: School-level factors, such as teachers, curriculum, pedagogy, school environment, etc. are important but these alone may not be the reason for poor learning outcomes in India. In fact, there has been a certain improvement in school facilities over time in almost all states of India. However, this improvement is not reflected adequately in learning outcomes. 

All studies which have assessed the impact of school, family and socio-economic conditions on learning outcomes show that family and socio-economic factors impact learning outcomes the most. In fact, there are global studies which show that family and socio-economic factors are more important, especially in primary grades, in determining the learning outcomes of school children. The role of these factors may decline in higher grades in developed countries as students acquire certain autonomy in decisions which affect them. However, that autonomy may not be significant in the case of teenagers in India. For example, the dropout rate of girls in secondary grades in India may be more due to the decision of parents and not due to the autonomy of these students. 

Q: Parents play an important role in the learning of children. How exactly do we understand this role? 

A: There are tangible and intangible aspects of parents’ role in the learning of their children. It is very clear that parents’ educational background matters. The higher the levels of parents’ education, the more positive its impact on their children’s education. There may be different pathways through which parents’ education impacts children’s learning. Additional academic support that is available at home is an important factor. Educated parents are in a better position to understand the learning status of their children and take corrective steps. They are in a better position to engage with school teachers regarding their children’s learning. 

Then there are intangible ways in which educated parents may influence the learning of their children. They serve as role models (in terms of what can be achieved through education) and may enhance children’s educational aspirations. It is noted that discussions of parents with children about their future, their career choices, etc., may influence educational outcomes (Lee and Shute, 2010). 

In general, the education of parents is important for both, the school and higher education of their children. This is the reason why educational inequality persists over generations. Let us take two youngsters A and B. Both may have graduate-level education (say 16 years of education). However, if A has a parent who is a graduate, and B​’s parents are illiterate, the final outcome of the education of A and B may be different. A may have a higher level of advantages in this regard. 

The finding that well-educated parents positively impact the education of their children is not very useful from a policy perspective because it may give the impression that nothing can be done in the short term to improve the learning of children with less educated or uneducated parents. This is not true. There are other enabling factors, and policies and projects can help improve the learning of those children whose parents are not educated and cannot provide learning support at home. 

Q: What can be attempted to enhance the learning outcomes of children whose parents are not educated? 

A: An important insight in this regard is that additional academic support matters. A set of studies has shown the positive contribution of tuition (data analysed in Santhakumar et al 2016) from parents, relatives, or paid masters. This may be interpreted as the positive impact of the additional attention provided by an educated person (and this person need not have the qualifications of a teacher). 

In a school classroom, all children may get somewhat similar attention from teachers. Moreover, the class size in Indian government schools may be very large. Even if there are only 25 or 30 children in a class, the teacher may not be able to provide enough attention to each child. Since the learning pace of each child is different, most students may require some special or additional attention. 

Studies have shown that the impact on learning outcomes between a permanently employed (and qualified) teacher and a contract teacher (who may not have gone through teacher education) may not be very different. This again may indicate the usefulness of the attention that the child gets from an educated person. Hence, many less-educated parents arrange private tuition for their children. They may engage a boy or girl in the neighbourhood who has some general education (grades X and XII) for this. This helps. There are non-governmental organisations which may provide additional contract teachers to government schools. This may help in increasing the attention and support to children, especially those who may not get adequate attention from regular teachers. A few other organisations support community volunteers who may provide such additional academic support to children in villages or urban neighbourhoods. These are all useful interventions. 

We have noted that children’s aspirations related to education are important for the completion of school education and learning achievements. However, poorer and less educated parents may not be able to create these aspirations in their children. They may not have role models in their extended families or communities who have benefitted through education. One experiment in education was to create such role models. This has been attempted by NGOs and other organisations working in education and some of these are documented in our book (Santhakumar et all, 2016).

One challenge faced by poor parents is that they may not have much communication with teachers in the schools where their children attend. This is much more so in the case of migrant workers. The class, social and language differences as well as the difficulty of taking time off from work may prevent these parents from visiting schools or even attending School Management Committee (SMC) meetings. The functionaries of NGOs or philanthropic foundations may serve as intermediaries between schools and these poorer parents. 

Q: How does the home/​family environment affect the learning of children?

A: We have discussed the role of educated parents and academic support at home. However, family or home environment matters beyond these aspects. If children are forced to do housework, it can have an impact on their learning (they may not be able to do school homework). Conflicts between parents and the lack of enough space for study, etc., may have an impact on their academic achievement as evident from the case studies of children which are carried out by students of the EDIL course of our university.

Parents should be in a position to monitor the education of their children. In certain cases, the occupation of parents and their absence from home may have an impact on the education of children; The absence of the father for longer periods, the need to help single mothers, etc., are found to have a negative impact on the attendance of children in schools and finally their learning outcomes. 

Q: What can be attempted by school teachers to improve the learning outcomes of those children whose family/​home environment is not enabling? 

A: It is the teachers who can identify students who are not learning well. Parents of such children may not be able to provide academic support at home but if teachers find time and ways to provide additional attention, it can have a positive impact. There are several such cases where teachers voluntarily do this leading to positive outcomes. Some of these stories are documented on University Practice-Connect by Rajashree, Ankur Madan, and others from the faculty of the School of Education, Azim Premji University. We will discuss this in detail in another Q&A. 

Q: What can be the role of communities in the learning achievements of children?

A: Ensuring that all children attend schools may require community initiatives. These can also make learning (say, reading and writing) attractive. Community libraries are useful. There are such examples of public libraries in Kerala and elsewhere. Though parents and community leaders should not interfere in the academic activities of schools, they should express their views publicly if schools are not providing the expected learning. These can be conveyed directly to teachers, other education functionaries or elected representatives. However, the ability of parents to voice their views is different in different contexts. There are indications that those government schools where parents have a voice perform relatively better. Communities should have the ability to pressurise the government to get basic facilities (including adequate teachers) for the school. 

There are states, such as Kerala and Himachal Pradesh, where government schools function relatively well. It has been noted that in both these states, there has been greater pressure on, and hence, willingness on the part of their state governments to improve schools by ensuring that there is an adequate number of teachers, they come to school regularly, and that there is sufficient infrastructure. In schools in Kerala, there are special provisions to improve the learning achievements of children who lag behind in terms of test scores.

Parents’ ability to participate in community actions to improve schools which benefit their children may depend on their position in the local social context (class, caste, etc.). In contexts where the underclass is politically mobilised, there may be more and better opportunities for the poor and marginalised. Wherever the social/​economic fragmentation is intense, the participation of poorer parents in community actions may be affected impacting the education of their children. This is evident from a comparative picture of Indian states, the improvement of the education situation in Tamil Nadu, etc. We will discuss these in detail in another Q&A. 

Q: Does children’s ill health and the lack of access to healthcare have an impact on learning outcomes?

A: Yes, if children fall sick often, it can have a negative impact on their attendance in school and it may lead to lower learning outcomes. The fact that many human habitations in India may not have access to a reasonable healthcare facility may aggravate this situation. The public healthcare system is weaker in many parts of the country. The use of medical facilities in towns and cities may mean the need to spend a lot more time and money. These can have a negative impact on the access to healthcare which may lead to frequent absence of children from schools. 

This issue is a lot more serious when we note the public health situation in the country. There is open defecation in different parts of the country. This can lead to water pollution and put children at risk of worm infestation causing malnutrition even if children get an adequate amount of food (as these parasites may consume a part of the food that should be available for the growth of the child). This malnutrition can affect not only the growth of the body but also the cognitive development of children. There can be learning deficiencies due to this problem. Even without open defecation, human waste from households and commercial establishments ends up in water bodies and also pollutes soil, increasing the risks of water-borne diseases. 

Health issues of children may have a greater impact on those children who face other kinds of difficulties. A child with educated parents may be able to get additional academic support for the lost classes (due to sickness or non-attendance in school). But this may not be possible for less educated parents who may also have to spend a lot of time earning a living to meet their subsistence needs.

Santhakumar V is former professor, Azim Premji University, Bengaluru.  
 

Primary reading material

Santhakumar, V., Gupta, N., & Sripada, R. 2016. Who are not learning well in schools? Schooling for All in India: Can We Neglect the Demand? Oxford University Press.

Lee, J and Shute, V. J. 2010. Personal and Social-Contextual Factors in K‑12 Academic Performance: An Integrative Perspective on Student Learning. Educational Psychologist. 45(3). pp.185 – 202.

For Himachal Pradesh:  Mangla, A. 2014. Bureaucratic Norms and State Capacity: Implementing Primary Education in India’s Himalayan Region. Working Paper 14 – 099, Harvard Business School.

For Kerala, a review and description of the additional support programme: V. Santhakumar and Vargheese Kochattu Antony. What happens when most children are in school? Lessons from Kerala. University Practice-Connect. https://​prac​tice​con​nect​.azim​premji​u​ni​ver​si​ty​.edu​.in/​w​h​a​t​-​h​a​p​p​e​n​s​-​w​h​e​n​-​m​o​s​t​-​c​h​i​l​d​r​e​n​-​a​r​e​-​i​n​-​s​chool 

Featured photo by Jessica Lewis ? thepaintedsquare on Unsplash