Significant no of students across globe struggling to gain foundational literacy and numeracy skills: Education MoS

Pune: Various surveys from across the globe suggest that there is a learning crisis and a significant portion of students in elementary school are struggling to gain Foundational Literacy and Numeracy skills, Union Minister of State for Education Rajkumar Ranjan Singh said on Monday.

"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. Various surveys from across the globe suggest that we are in a learning crisis and a significant portion of students in elementary school are struggling to gain FLN," he said.

"Attaining Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN) for all children thus becomes an urgent priority for our educational systems requiring immediate measures to be taken on many fronts and with clear goals which will be attained in the short term (including that every student will attain foundational literacy and numeracy by Class 3)," he added.

The minister made the comments during a keynote address at the fourth and final G20 Education Working Group (EdWG) meeting.

"India's G20 EdWG Presidency is focused on building and carrying forward deliberations in past presidencies and on addressing concerns which are impediment in realising full transformational potential of education by bridging gaps in quality education and skilling, as well as on accelerating the pursuit of the SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals).

"Our new National Education Policy lays particular emphasis on the development of the creative potential of each individual as it is based on the principle that education must develop not only cognitive capacities -- both the foundational capacities of literacy and numeracy and higher-order cognitive capacities, such as critical thinking and problem solving -- but also social, ethical, and emotional capacities and dispositions," he said.

The overarching theme of the meeting is "Ensuring Foundation Literacy and Numeracy, Especially in the Context of Blended Learning."

The EdWG meeting comprises various precursor events, seminars, exhibitions, heritage excursions, and will culminate with the Education Ministerial meeting on June 22.

On the sidelines of the meeting, an exhibition was inaugurated on June 17 that will showcase innovative practices being adopted in education and foundational literacy and numeracy, digital initiatives, research and skill development, in particular by the states and Union Territories, besides other agencies in the field of education.

The first meeting of the G20 EdWG was held in Chennai in January, followed by one in Amritsar in March and the third in Bhubaneswar in April.

School Education Secretary Sanjay Kumar said, "The discussions during the meeting would focus on issues related to curriculum, pedagogical approaches, capacity building of teachers and other stakeholders and role of parents and other caregivers and community members in supporting learning at home."