Bihar, Jharkhand, UP primary schools abound with overage children

New Delhi, Jan 11 (UNI) Bihar, Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh have a large number of over age children in primary classes as compared to other states, according to the Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) for 2006 and 2005.

In Bihar and Jharkhand, more than 35 per cent children in the third standard were ten years or older, and in Uttar Pradesh it was 28 per cent, whereas children should reach this level by the age of eight years, says the report.

On the other hand, in Tamil Nadu and Kerala, the percentage of children who were 10 years or older at that level was less than three.

If standard and age are compared across the country, overall, 21.4 per cent of standard three children are 10 years or older.

There are interesting and important implications of these numbers.

Over-age children in primary school are less likely to complete the elementary stage, the Report said.

According to the survey, overall enrolment was unchanged since last year. There was, however, a perceptible shift towards private schools, especially in Punjab, Haryana and Karnataka.

Enrollment remained steady at 93.2 per cent for the 6-14 year age group as against 93.5 per cent last year. No change was discernible at the national level.

Out of all five-year-old children, 46.6 per cent were enrolled in formal schools. Nationally, five-year-olds form 21.8 per cent of the first standard.

The national enrollment stands at 95.3 per cent for the age group of 7-10 years in most states except Rajasthan, Bihar, Orissa, West Bengal, Jharkhand, Arunachal and Meghalaya where enrolment of 6-10 years age is above 95 per cent.

In the 11-14 year age group, national enrollment stands at 91.1 per cent in most states except Rajasthan, Bihar, Orissa, West Bengal, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh where enrollment is above 90 per cent.

As far as enrolment of girls was concerned, it was 95 per cent in the 7-10 years age group. However, the number fell down sharply as they became older. The report says that at the age of 11 to 14 many states have 10 to 20 per cent girls out of school.

UNI