Why 500 lost days of school will spell disaster for India

Last year the Joint Entrance Exam to IIT was to be held in January and April. But the second one was affected by Covid and lockdown. Due to the extreme disruption in schools and coaching classes the April exam got postponed. But no firm date was fixed due to uncertainty of the pandemic. It was then to be held in August. One section of students wanted further postponement. Others felt it would just extend the agony and anxiety. For some, the “peaking” time was going away. As it is, the students were losing concentration. JEE is, after all, the most high pressure entrance exam in the country, with only one percent chance of success. There was much back and forth about postponement or not. The debate landed up in the Supreme Court. A young, cheerful, bright student named Vikram was hoping for postponement, and for him the court verdict came too abruptly. Under extreme pressure, he took his own life. A promising young life snuffed out by suicide. Whom to blame? Covid? Arbitrary changes to high pressure entrance examinations like JEE and NEET? Alas, Vikram’s case is not isolated.medium nocaption86147212 Another young student, another high pressure exam, from a village in Goa. Rohit was studying for his Class 10 exam. He was bright, his teachers were impressed with his sincerity in their online classes. His father had lost his job and the family was struggling with limited resources. But their priority was education and hence the smartphone was for Rohit’s use. Unfortunately, the screen cracked. It needed to be repaired. His father said wait a few days till we can afford the repairs. They only had money to buy rice, thanks to lockdown induced joblessness. The normally calm and mature Rohit was very stressed. He could not afford to miss out on classes. Tempers flared. Later in the day, he ended his life with a rope. Another young life lost. Covid, online, smartphone, destroyed livelihoods, mismanagement, or just psychology and stress?Whom to blame? Surely, there are many such stories, probably remaining untold, that have touched millions of families. Not each tragedy has to end in suicide, but it can equally damage families and futures. medium86142755Such anecdotes abound and give us a sense of the disruption and damage. We now have an official document, a rigorous study done to evaluate how online education of especially primary and upper-primary students is faring in the time of Covid. Published with the title “Emergency Report on Online Education” and authored by economists Jean Dreze, Reetika Khera, Nirali Bakhla and Vipul Paikra, it gives a clearly documented dismal picture. It is based on the work of more than 100 volunteers who did an exhaustive survey of nearly 1,400 school children from Class 1 to Class 8, hailing from states like Assam, Bihar, Delhi, Gujarat, Haryana, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal. The findings are shocking.Meet the kids for whom education is almost dead medium85586991Only eight per cent of students in rural areas, and 24 per cent in urban areas are studying online regularly. In recent months, 19 per cent in urban areas and 37 per cent in rural areas, are not studying at all. These students have completely dropped out. More than half, that is 52 per cent in urban areas and 71 per cent in rural areas, did not even meet their teacher(s) in the past 30 days prior to the survey. Closure of schools has affected child nutrition too, since mid-day meals at school are closed. Many families did get substitute meals either as food or cash. But nearly 20 per cent in urban areas and 14 per cent in rural areas did not get any substitute at all, neither food nor cash. Learning outcomes have deteriorated due to non-functioning online education. Since children have been promoted without exams, the problem has gotten worse. We may have kids in Class 5 with reading skills of Class 3. The problem is acute for lower income classes, and especially Dalits and Adivasis. Among these, only five percent of the students are attending online classes.Covid affected lives and livelihoods. The Indian economy has still not recovered to its 2019 level. Overall employment too is below pre-pandemic levels. In rural areas there is huge demand for jobs under the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGA), which is like a proxy for unemployment insurance. That is an indicator of rural distress. No wonder parents have pulled out kids from school as they cannot afford the fees. The incidence of child labour, or unpaid work, especially girl child at home has increased. The report also describes stress that’s built up. medium nocaption86142777 Parents complain that due to idleness, lack of exercise or phone addiction, or otherwise, children have become undisciplined, aggressive or even violent. The almost unanimous demand (97 per cent from rural respondents) is that schools should be reopened immediately. We cannot use Covid as an alibi for easy lockdown decisions. Reopening will be imaginative planning, rotation of attendance, strict protocols and trial and error. The 500 days of school lock out has had a damaging effect on India’s human capital. It will need years to gain lost ground. But we must begin with reopening schools immediately.Ajit Ranade is an economist and writes on economy and current affairs(Disclaimer: The views expressed here are the author's own)From the same author:- What Zomato tells us about brave new world of valuations- Will a frail old man’s death shake the nation’s conscience?- Why history may judge this PM more kindly than his party- Beyond Rao & Singh: Unsung heroes of 1991 reforms- How we can bring the Olympic winning spirit to our exports