For 19 months in pandemic, 43% children had no access to education: Study

The socially and economically disadvantaged groups and children with disabilities were worst impacted as compared to more advantaged counterparts: Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy's report

Primarily due to a lack of internet and access to digital devices, 43 per cent of children in India did not have access to education for 19 months since March 2020. According to a new study, as much as 97 per cent of children in India, as per some estimates, did not have access to devices like smartphones, tablets or laptops.

In early November, New Delhi-based think tank Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy released a report titled "Clearing the Air: A Synthesised Mapping of Out of School Children during Covid-19 in India (April 2020-May 2022)", compiling various other studies to map the loss of school education during Covid-19 pandemic.

"We find that children across different socioeconomic contexts have been severely affected and educational gaps, in access to educational materials, devices, internet, and other basic resources to continue schooling, were expectedly worse for those with prior disadvantages, and varied across gender, age, region, and disability," the think-tank's website said.

It further added that the drop-outs or non-enrollments during the pandemic ranged from 1.3 per cent to 43.5 per cent. Also, the lack of internet connectivity to get online education ranged from 11 per cent to 91 per cent.

The socially and economically disadvantaged groups and children with disabilities were worst impacted, as compared to more advantaged counterparts, in getting an education during the pandemic.

In an earlier conversation with Business Standard, Wilima Wadhwa, director of the ASER Centre, said that the teachers and schools cannot go back to "business as usual" post-pandemic. The equity gap got exacerbated, and the schools will have to figure out "what worked and for whom" to fill the gaps.

ASER's reports have been referenced in the Vidhi Centre's study.

The survey, additionally, found a new "possible" section of the population that got excluded from education.

"We find early evidence of possible new sites of exclusion – specifically among migrant communities, younger children, and children attending low-fee private schools," it said.

As a solution, the study suggested tracking the progress and addressing the difference in learning based on the students' backgrounds.

"As we try to bring children back to schools, it is critical to continue tracking and redressing the differential schooling experiences of children based on their backgrounds. In the same vein, understanding the reach and effectiveness of remedial programmes and initiatives undertaken by the central and state governments remains pertinent as well," the report said.