Executive Summary
This report outlines the findings of a six-month intensive Reading Research Study conducted in Goa, India commissioned by Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan and the Directorate of Education, Government of Goa.
The study, using a random sampling method, assessed literacy levels in English of 111 children in Std. 5 across 15 schools (government and government-aided) in the state. The study also examined school and curricular processes in Stds. 4 and 5 that inform and strengthen literacy, and included a small home community sample to complete the complex picture of how children learn to read and write with meaning.
Findings reveal a literacy crisis that must be addressed urgently. Only 8 percent of the students assessed could perform the literacy tests at a near grade-appropriate level.
Over 75 percent of the students did not have basic literacy skills (alphabetic knowledge, phonological awareness, semantic knowledge/ fluency), and were unable to read or write in English.
The lowest performers belong to the government schools, indicating that an introduction of English as a subject in the primary years without good language pedagogy, teacher proficiency in the language, and a balanced literacy program is tokenistic. This was further corroborated in 32 classroom observations, 15 Headmaster/ Principal interviews, and 30 English teacher interviews. The field work showed that vision and accountability for students’ learning was different in aided and government schools, and may impact learning, teaching performance and functioning of the school as a whole.
The curricular material for English presently used is a uniform textbook that does not provide the support that either the learner or the teacher needs to transact a complex goal of literacy and language. The absence of clear outcomes at the end of units or even the grade years renders the learning uneven and disadvantages children severely when they shift to an English medium in Std. 5.
Home and community visits indicated that parents and siblings (family units) are highly motivated to access learning for children through the school system. They invest to varied extents in learning support resources and trust the schools to be delivering required competencies. The absence of this delivery renders the crisis even more alarming and puts the responsibility back on the state to start making amends.
The study provides strong indicators for an intensive literacy re-imagination in the state. This must include shifts in understanding at the knowledge level for policy makers and practitioners, intensive training in balanced literacy pedagogy for teachers, curricular revisions or better curricular support within the classrooms and literacy programs at the community level to support diverse homes and communities. On-going assessments, standardized grade level outcomes at critical grades and further research in literacy education are strongly recommended to keep Goa ahead of the literacy watershed and support a community of learners who progress through the 21st century as true literates.