Coimbatore district hits ‘bottom line' in learning outcome survey
Coimbatore: The district has cut a sorry figure in the state-level survey to assess the learning outcomes among the govt and aided school students of Classes III, V and VIII - at 38th, Coimbatore was ranked last in the state.
In the State Level Achievement Survey, 2025, conducted jointly by the State Planning Commission, Samagra Shiksha, State Council for Educational Research and Training, and the Directorate of School and Elementary Education, Kanyakumari topped the state with a pass percentage of 66.55, followed by Madurai (63.72) and Cuddalore (63.66).
Coimbatore recorded an overall pass percentage of 48.24, below the state average in all subjects - Tamil, English, mathematics, environmental science, science and social science.
Among the district's 15 revenue blocks, Thondamuthur fared the worst, with an average pass percentage of 40.34 across subjects.
A primary school teacher, who did not wish to be named, said the survey was not like regular school exams. "The exam contained logical, higher-order thinking and application-based questions. Some students, especially those in Class III, needed explanations to understand them. They found it difficult to answer the questions.
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They require practice to attempt such exams."
He said the exam was conducted in a very strict manner in the district. "Final-year students of arts and engineering colleges supervised the test. Teachers were not allowed in the exam halls. We are unsure how strictly it was conducted in other districts."
S Chandrasekar, Coimbatore zonal coordinator of Palli Kalvi Pathukappu Iyakkam, blamed the lack of monitoring in govt schools for the district's poor performance.
"Earlier, Covid lockdowns were cited as a reason for the learning gap. But even after three years, the situation has not improved much."
He said regular inspections should be conducted to assess classroom teaching, and special attention must be given to slow learners. "A district-level monitoring committee should be formed to review teaching methods and improvements."
A Thangabasu, state vice-president, Tamil Nadu Primary School Teachers Federation, highlighted the acute shortage of teachers at the primary level.
"Many retired teachers have not been replaced in the past 12 years. Several elementary and middle schools function with just one teacher, handling Classes I to V."
He said Coimbatore was also the district that assigns the most teachers to booth level officer duties, which involve the job of voter list verification, conducting electoral camps and booth slip distribution. "When we complain, officials say the revenue department lacks adequate staff."
According to him, teachers are burdened with non-teaching work, including uploading student data on the Education Management Information System portal, handling Aadhaar corrections, conducting camps and managing scholarship details. "These duties distract teachers from focusing on academics. The School Education Department should fill vacancies and free teachers from non-academic tasks to improve learning outcomes," Thangabasu said.
When contacted, chief education officer R Balamurali said the teachers would be sensitised on the survey findings. "District Institute of Education and Training will provide training focused on improving learning outcomes. Continuous follow-ups will be done post-training, with attention at revenue block and school levels."
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