Telangana has the highest percentage of students in the 14-18 age group who are not enrolled in school. As against the national average of 13.2%, the State has 22.1% of children in the age group who are not enrolled in any school or college. More than a quarter of boys or 26% and 17.4% girls are out of the education system. The number shoots up to 40.1% when it comes to children in the age group of 17-18. Within this demographic, 68.7% are engaged in work for more than 15 days a month.
In what adds a touch of irony to the narrative, 89.2% of these education-detached teenagers aged 17-18 years showcase the ability to navigate the digital landscape — they excel at searching and finding videos, and exhibit a flair for sharing content.
These statistics are extrapolated from the latest Annual Status of Education Report (Rural) for the year 2022, which was released recently. ASER is a nationwide citizen-led household survey that provides a snapshot of the status of children’s schooling and learning in rural India.
The ASER survey was carried out in Khammam district of Telangana where children’s learning and other achievements were studied in 59 villages. In comparison, Chhattisgarh’s Gariaband district had 20.9% children out of school while Jabalpur in Madhya Pradesh had 21.3% children out of school.
Called foundational skills assessment, the ASER study gives an index of educational facilities and the quality of teaching across the country through an intensive survey.
When it comes to financial calculations, 47.8% students in Telangana could balance a budget lower than the national average of 60%. Nationally, 10% of students could calculate repayment. In Telangana, only 6.4% could calculate repayment.
One bright spot, however, is that while nationally 25% of 14-18 age group still cannot read a Std II level text fluently, 46.25% students in Telangana could read it. However, nationally, 43.3% students in the 14-18 age group could solve arithmetic problems, but in Telangana only 19.75% could do the calculations. The national average for reading sentences in English is 57.3% but in Telangana, it is only 43.2%.
Aspirationally, 25.2% girl students want to become nurses and 15.5% teachers. In contrast, 18.8% of the boys did not know what career they want to pursue, and 18% of them do not want to work.
