Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): In Madhya Pradesh, a significant portion of teenagers aged 14-16 years reported knowing how to use a smartphone, with around 82.2% stating smartphone proficiency, though only 57% used it for educational purposes, ASER 2024 Survey Report said.
Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) released the report on Tuesday. Boys have more digital access and more ownership than girls among children of age group 14-16. In the same age group, boys perform better on most digital tasks than girls, the report said.
The report also highlights a rise in government school enrollment and attendance compared to private schools, with an increase in multi-grade classrooms in primary government schools.
Out of school numbers for 15-16 year boys is higher than 12% in Madhya Pradesh – one of the highest in the country. In the age group 15-16, more than 80% of rural boys and girls are enrolled in school in the state. These proportions, however, are below all India levels, where more than 90% in this age group are enrolled.
In MP, the difference in 15- 16-year-old boys and girls not enrolled in school remains the same as in 2022. However, the gender gap has been falling. Enrollment in early childhood education programmes or pre-school is high – over 90% for aged 3 and 4.
Underage (under age 5) children enrolled in Std I is declining. In 2024, in Std I, 23.3% children are ‘underage’. Overall enrollment in school for age group 6-14 remains very high at 97.5%.
Improvements in basic reading and arithmetic were seen in all grades, especially in early grades. Learning gains in most cases are higher for children enrolled in government schools as compared to private schools. Std III children in MP show gain in reading between 2022 and 2024 whereas Std V reading and arithmetic levels have improved since 2022, with more improvement in reading than in arithmetic. The learning levels of Std V children are lower than All India levels (Reading: 48.8%, Arithmetic: 30.7%) in 2024. In MP, like in most states, Std V children enrolled in government schools have higher reading levels in 2024 than in 2022.
* Basic school facilities like mid-day meals, electricity and libraries are improving over time
* School facilities like drinking water and useable toilets have remained the same over the last few years
* Electricity and library provision has improved in 2024 as compared to 2018.
* Schools report receiving directives, training and materials or funds related to strengthening foundational literacy and numeracy (FLN) for early grades in primary school.
* More than 75% schools had three-month ‘school readiness’ programmes for incoming Std I children in government schools
