ASER, NAS, AND FLS: WHAT THE EDUCATION SURVEYS BROADLY REVEAL AND WHERE THEY FALL SHORT

With schools set to reopen next month, understanding how children are actually learning beyond their exam results becomes crucial for parents, teachers and policymakers alike.

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India currently relies on three major assessments to gauge learning levels: the Annual Status of Education Report (ASER), the National Achievement Survey (NAS)-recently revamped as PARAKH Rashtriya Sarvekshan—and the Foundational Learning Study (FLS). Each of these tools offers a different lens into the country’s school system, but their findings have raised deeper questions about what’s being measured, what’s being missed and what must change on the ground. Pioneering the assessment of foundational reading and arithmetic skills in India, ASER was launched in 2005 by the non-profit organisation Pratham. According to Pratham’s website, ASER is a household based survey that collects information on children’s schooling status and basic learning outcomes in almost every rural district in the country.