Foundational knowledge: Why our parliament is worried

We all felt that the pandemic has affected education. Whether it is coping with the new habits required for online classes, getting used to staying out of school, new test systems or simply lack of quality education, parents, students and educators have all been impacted. This August, these thoughts were echoed in a report presented by The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Education, Women, Children, Youth and Sports.  

What did the parliament report say?  
According to the parliament panel report, the learning loss of more than one year due to prolonged school closure following the pandemic “would necessarily have weakened the foundational knowledge of students, especially in the subjects of mathematics, sciences and languages, at school level”. The report is a very detailed one. It does not only list the concerns of the panel around the quality of education and how the learning gap is getting wider, it also suggests remedies.  

What are the most affected areas? 
The report suggests that the most affected are the students from weaker sections of the society, including marginalised people and young girls who do not have access to digital education. In terms of subjects, the “foundational knowledge” of Maths, science and languages is the worst hit. The report sends out almost a warning in this regard, “This learning loss is a big deficit and is likely to impair the cognitive capabilities of students.”  

By fundamental education it means learning to read and write, learning to count and perform simple calculations through addition, subtraction, multiplication and division, and understanding the basic concepts of Physics, Chemistry and Biology. Since children used to get mid-day meals at school and a chance to interact with other kids, the report notes, the pandemic has also affected nutrition and mental health, and may increase drop-out rates in the country.  

What are the remedies?  
The report recognises that the digital and online mode of education is going to be the new normal for some time. So funds need to be allocated and policies adopted briskly by the government to empower students. They plan to begin with a through data collection drive to fully comprehend the exact need, and proceed accordingly.