According to the 2016 Annual Status of Education Report (ASER), developed by a non-governmental organisation, Pratham, Himachal Pradesh was found to be best performing state in India on the education front as compared to the rest of the states.
- Himachal Pradesh had the highest reading and mathematics learning levels, surpassing even Kerala which is regarded as the most literate state of India.
Analysis of 2016 Annual Status of Education Report (ASER)
ASER conducted the survey on 15,630 government schools in rural India. Out of this 283 schools were visited in Himachal Pradesh where 15 organisations participated in ASER-2016 across the state.
- As per the report the enrolment rate of students in the age group 6-14 in Himachal Pradesh was 99.8 percent and the state secured first rank in achieving learning outcomes in basic reading and mathematics across the country.
- In language category, government schools of Himachal Pradesh was 65.3 percent more literate as compared to the national level of 41.6 percent.
- In mathematics category, the achievement level of the state was 47.4 percent as compared to the national level of 21.1 per cent. The government schools have performed better than private schools throughout the state in mathematics.
- In learning of English language, the national level had the achievement level of 15.3 percent whereas it is 44 percent in case of Himachal Pradesh and the state ranked fifth in the country.
- Besides, Himachal Pradesh has the highest rate of children who can read a standard II level of text in the country while 47 percent can read standard III level books, a 70.5 percent for standard V and an 87.9 percent for standard VIII.
About Annual Status of Education Report (ASER)
The Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) is the largest non-governmental annual household survey undertaken in rural India and is facilitated by the Pratham Education Foundation.
- ‘ASER’ means impact in Hindi. The survey measures the enrolment status of children between 3-16 years and tests basic reading and arithmetic abilities of children through a common set of testing tools and a comprehensive sampling framework.
- A local institution carries out the survey in each rural district. The entire pan-Indian process is completed within approximately 100 days and the report is released in January each year.
- ASER reports are generally used by State and Centre Governments to help define their education programmes each year.
Pratham Education Foundation
Pratham is one of the largest non-governmental organisations in India. It was co-founded by Madhav Chavan and Farida Lambay . It works towards the provision of quality education to the underprivileged children in India.
- Founder:Â Madhav Chavan
- Motto:Â Every Child in School & Learning Well
- Headquarters:Â Mumbai & Delhi
