ASER 2017 ‘Beyond Basics’

National release in mid January 2018

Dimapur, September 19 (MExN): ASER Centre, the autonomous research and assessment unit of Pratham, has announced the launch of the Annual Status of Education (ASER) effort for 2017, ‘Beyond Basics’. The national release of the ASER report will be in mid January, 2018 in New Delhi.  

With the exception of 2015, ASER has been conducted across rural India every year since 2005. ASER has reported annually on children’s schooling status and their ability to do basic reading and arithmetic tasks. Year after year, ASER has highlighted the fact that although almost all children in the 6-14 age groups are enrolled in school, they are not acquiring even the foundational skills that could help them propel themselves forward, both in school and in life.  

In 2017, ASER will focus on a different but related set of issues, taking a longer, deeper look at older children (in the age group 14-18). In addition to recording their schooling and foundational learning status, we will collect information in several other areas related to their preparedness to lead useful and productive lives as they move beyond the elementary school age and prepare to enter adulthood, informed a press release.  

ASER 2017 will thus look ‘Beyond Basics’: it will use the tried and tested ASER methodology (sample based household survey, local participation, simple tools) to explore a wider set of domains with an older age group – those just beyond the elementary school age. The survey will be conducted in 27 districts in 23 states, unlike the previous editions of ASER which reached almost all rural districts each year. 60 villages in each district will be surveyed by volunteers from local partner institutions. The majority of partners for ASER 2017 comprise reputed institutions of higher education located in or near the survey districts.  

ASER 2017 will be kicked off on September 20 with a preparatory national workshop in Jaipur. Close to 100 ASER team members who lead the effort in their respective states will attend the workshop to understand and practice the tools and processes to be used in ASER 2017 ‘Beyond Basics’. “As always this residential training has classroom sessions plus two days of field practice. The national workshop will be followed by training workshops for district partner organizations,” stated a press release.