‘SC/ST, OBC students doing better in class’

26 Aug 2008: The Times of India
 
The learning ability of students of class III and VII in government schools has shown remarkable progress since 2004, thanks to SC/ST/OBC and girl students who have done better than others.

This has come out in the second survey of learning achievement conducted in 2006 by the National Council of Educational Research and Training With a sample size of 49,521, the survey for class III was done in 34 states/UTs and tested students’ ability in addition, substraction, multiplication, division, problems based on money and time, fraction, geometry and measurement.

In language, they were tested for spelling, vocabulary, number, gender, tense, proposition and composition. Sources say what has brought about the change is specific reading and mathematics programme in 25 states/UTs for primary classes and for upper primary classes in 18 states.

In fact, 50% of the money is now geared towards improving quality. Sources compared to the previous survey, in mathematics rural students showed improvement from 58.14% to 61%. The mathematical ability of urban students, however, barely improved from 58.52% to 59%.

The stereotyped view of mathematics being forte of boys has been demolished by girls as 60% of them could take the test successfully. In the last survey, 57.94% cleared the test. In the case of boys, though 60% cleared the test, it is a small increase from last survey’s 58.54%. As for ST/SC students, 60% girls and 59% boys cleared the mathematics test.

There is a great deal of consistency and bigger improvement among boys/girls/rural/urban/SC/ST/others when it comes to language. From the last survey’s average of 62%, now it has gone up to 67%.

While students of Gujarat, Karnataka and Delhi have shown remarkable decline in their mathematical ability, those in MP, Kerala and Tamil Nadu have shown substantial improvement. The learning level of class VII students was done in four subjects — mathematics, science, social science and language — in 12 states. The sample size was 14,683. Here again girls outshone boys in mathematics. While 39.17% girls could successfully do problems in arithmetic, geometry, mensuration, algebra and statistics, only 38.35% boys could do so.

What is remarkable is the improvement by girls since the last survey when only 30.82% of them could clear it. Boys have hardly shown any progress. In case of SCs, it has gone from 28.78% to 36.80% now. STs improved from 33.20% to 37.82%. But OBCs have done the best — from 28.84% in the previous survey to 39.95% now. In social sciences, students of all hues have shown improvement. Unlike class III, class VII students in Gujarat have shown improvement in all subjects.