October 29, 2020
TED NewsDesk, New Delhi: One of the significant transition amid COVID-19 pandemic is the introduction of online mode of education. A recent survey by the Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) 2020, showed that the teachers in rural areas need a lot more work and training. The AESR organised a survey amid the Coronavirus crisis, to analyse the growth and impact of digital learning. It issued its findings on Wednesday.
The reports found almost 50% of the teachers in rural areas without any formal training while 68.8% with perfunctory training based on brief instructions. Out of the 68.8% teachers with perfunctory training, 32.2% received extensive sessions both through online and physical mode. On the other hand, 7.5% of them finished an online programme and 4.4 acquired some insights into teaching.
The well-trained teachers constituted 50.6% of the ratio. These educators were associated with classes III-V. Several teachers among them had the phone numbers of a minimum 50% of their students to communicate or exchange mandatory information.
The ASER report also notified about a transformation amid the lockdown. The enrollment sequence of candidates witnessed a “small shift” from private institutions to government-aided schools.
“As compared to data from ASER 2018, data from ASER 2020 (September) show a small shift in enrolment from private to government schools, across all grades and among both girls and boys. The proportion of boys enrolled in government schools rose from 62.8% in 2018 to 66.4% in 2020. Similarly, the proportion of girls enrolled in government schools rose from 70% to 73% during the same period,” the report stated.
The ASER 2020 (Rural) Wave 1 was the first-ever survey conducted on a phone call. It reached out to almost 118 838 houses. The surveyor called the parents of kids lying under the age group of 5-16 years. Besides, the report also delineated responses from 8963 teachers hence making it clear that training of teachers from rural areas is not up to the mark.
Sources: Hindustan Times