‘Over 55% J&K students lack grade-level skills’

Srinagar, Sep 16: In a worrisome development Jammu & Kashmir has been listed among the weakest performers nationally in foundational learning outcomes, with fewer than 45 percent of its students demonstrating grade-level skills in one or more subjects.
According to the official documents, Jammu and Kashmir alongside other regions of India like Meghalaya, Mizoram, Puducherry and Andhra Pradesh record some of the lowest outcomes.
The documents said that these regions have lowest outcomes with fewer than 45 percent of children demonstrating grade-level skills in one or more subjects.
“Kerala, Punjab, and Himachal Pradesh emerge as the strongest performers, with more than two-thirds of students achieving grade-level expectations across subjects. Chandigarh, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, and Odisha also perform above the national average, reflecting relatively stronger learning outcomes at this stage,” it reads.
The documents further said that several states, including Haryana, Goa, and Madhya Pradesh, are close to the national mean, while larger States such as Maharashtra and Rajasthan maintain encouraging levels in line with national performance.
“At the other end, Meghalaya, Jammu & Kashmir, Mizoram, Puducherry, and Andhra Pradesh record some of the lowest outcomes, with fewer than 45% of children demonstrating grade-level skills in one or more subjects. States such as Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Uttarakhand, and Nagaland also remain below the national mean, suggesting persistent gaps in preparatory-stage learning,” it reads.
It also said that the spread between the highest and lowest performers is substantial, with a difference of more than 30 percentage points in Language, over 25 percentage points in Mathematics and over 27 percentage points in ‘The World Around Us’.
“These disparities signal the need for sustained focus on upper-primary readiness to ensure that foundational gains are not lost as children progress through the system,” reads the documents. (KNO)