The NAS (National Achievement Survey), a countrywide test aimed at assessing the competencies developed by the students at the grade levels of third, fifth, eighth and tenth classes was conducted on November 12, 2021.The survey conducted every three years could not be conducted last year due to the pandemic . So this year along with its main assessment a strategy was made to assess the learning loss among school students due to disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The test was conducted with the participation of thousands of teachers and staff from various schools and education departments of the centre and the various states. According to the Ministry of Education it covered 38 lakh students in nearly 1.23 lakh schools in 733 districts across 36 states and Union Territories in government, government-aided and private schools. The survey was taken with students of classes 3, 5, 8 and 10 as the main participants along with selected number of teachers of the selected schools. However whether the survey will give the expected outcome is a matter to ponder. As schools have just reopened in many of the states and in some states students of the primary classes are still yet to step in the expected results of the survey ,according to many , may not be fully appropriate.
Earlier the Deputy CM of Delhi had urged the Education Ministry to postpone NAS as many schools in the country either had not opened and students have not yet returned. Also in some of the states that have a heavy number of schools, life has come to a stand still due to natural calamities. For example in Tamil Nadu, most schools remain closed due to heavy rain and floods. Many schools had already reported that they cannot ensure full percent attendance.
Sisodia had also mentioned that the result picture of this survey will not be effective as expected. The strategy of the survey even though it is meant to find the flaws and drawbacks and plan remedies to correct the problems may turn futile as conditions as of now are not congenial for such a mass survey of this proportion.
Teachers and officials who participated in the survey have opined that students especially in the primary sections were seen struggling to comprehend the questions, and also found it difficult filling the OMR sheets as they aren’t used to such practices. As for the past two years most of them attended only online classes and had their learning by listening and speaking many of them didn’t even know to hold pen and pencil.
Sisodia has rightly said that the survey will not be able to get details of the learning gap in the children who have not returned to schools and that the first initiative to be taken at present is to make sure children return to school and a strategy to be carried out to enhance and better the social-emotional-mental well-being of the students.
