Ministry of Education will be conducting a ‘foundational learning study’ in order to draw a first-hand understanding of the learning levels of the students at the foundational learning stage (at the end of Grade 3). The study is first of its kind in the world as it aims to set-up benchmarks for reading with comprehension in 22 Indian languages. The Foundational Learning Study will be conducted by the NCERT in all States and UTs over a window of four days i.e., 23rd, to 26th March, 2022 in the sampled schools. Approximately, 10000 schools and 1 lakh students are expected to participate in this study. The specific objectives of the foundational learning study are as follows:

•     To conduct a large-scale assessment of the foundational learning of grade 3 students to establish a baseline for the NIPUN Bharat mission

•     To establish reading proficiency benchmarks for fluency with comprehension for each of the languages being assessed under the study

•     To provide the data for SDG 4.1.1. (Covering aspects of foundational literacy and numeracy)

The National Education Policy 2020 highlights that “the ability to read and write, and perform basic operations with numbers, is a necessary foundation and an indispensable prerequisite for all future schooling and lifelong learning”. Focusing on ‘learning achievement’ in the foundational years is pertinent in order to provide the learners with capabilities to make their subsequent learning experiences more meaningful and absorbing. While the dimensions of learning can be manifold, the basic ability of reading with comprehension, writing and an understanding of the basic numeracy concepts (such as numbers, patterns etc.) relate to core learning goals at the foundational stage. Ministry of Education (MoE), has launched the ‘National Initiative for Proficiency in Reading with Understanding and Numeracy’ (NIPUN- BHARAT) mission to provide the roadmap for strengthening the domain of foundational learning at the national level.

The Foundational Learning study will enable to establish benchmarks in reading with comprehension in different Indian languages for children at Grade 3 level. It will assess the ability to read age-appropriate known as well as unknown text at a certain pace, accurately, and with comprehension and also the foundational numeracy skills and form a baseline for the NIPUN Bharat Goals.

*****

MJPS/AK