From learning to enrollment, India's primary education is in a shambles

The 13th edition of the Annual Status of Education Report (Rural) or Aser was released last week. Over the years, these reports, facilitated by a non-governmental organisation (Pratham), have become the de-facto source for mapping changes in the educational attainment of children in India’s schools. Aser surveys children between the ages of 3 and 16 to find out the status of enrolment and foundational skills (literacy and numeracy) across the country. The 2018 Aser reached out to close to 5,50,000 across almost 600 districts.