Education standards decline in Haryana: Report

CHANDIGARH: Caught in a row over recruitment of junior basic teachers (JBT) scam, a report on education standard in rural districts of has now further embarrassed the state. An Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) has revealed that the level of education in Haryana's rural hinterland has gone down in past two years.

According to the report based on survey of 575 villages in Haryana, over 40% students of Class V in government as well private schools were not able to read from textbooks of even Class II. The 40% statistic is a further slump from that of 33.5% in 2010 and 34% in 2011. Over 22,000 students in the age group of 3-16 years were included in the survey of over 11,500 households.

The survey was conducted during a three-month period between September and November 2012. "The ability to learn simple arithmetic is declining in rural schools. There is something wrong with the education policy or with the recruitment," said Neeraj Verma, an associate member of ASER survey team.

The state education minister Geeta Bhukkal immediately announced that the government would examine the survey report and would make required changes in the education system.

"We recruit teachers only when they qualify a specialized test. We arrange continuous training for them. A teachers selection board had been set up to ensure quick recruitment of teachers," Bhukkal said.

The survey further hits at the appalling education system, saying over 57% of Class V students were not able to solve simple questions of mathematics in comparison to around 42% such students, two years ago.

The decline in learning levels is more severe in government schools where over 75% of Class V students were not able to solve a division arithmetic involving a three-digit and a single digit number during the survey in 2012. The number of such students was just 50% two years ago.

"Schools in Haryana are in urgent need of teachers. Around 60% schools don't meet the 40:1 ratio of pupils-teachers as specified under the Right to Education Act," Verma pointed out. There are over 26,000 vacancies of school teachers at different levels in the state.

Congress'own MLA Sampat Singh conceded that the state has not been able to provide better education despite creating more infrastructure in schools.

"Repeated change of education policy including introduction of semester system and education through satellite (EDUSAT) and lack of transparent transfer policy have only created hurdles," said Singh.