Document of The World Bank Report No: ICR2520 IMPLEMENTATION COMPLETION AND RESULTS REPORT (IDA-44170, IDA-47000) ON A CREDIT IN THE AMOUNTS OF SDR 364.4 MILLION (US$600 MILLION EQUIVALENT) AND AN ADDITIONAL CREDIT IN THE AMOUNT OF SDR 482.6 MILLION (US$750 MILLION EQUIVALENT) TO THE REPUBLIC OF INDIA FOR A SECOND ELEMENTARY EDUCATION PROJECT (SSA II) March 28, 2013 Human Development Sector Unit South Asia Region CURRENCY EQUIVALENTS (Exchange Rate Effective September 30, 2012) Currency Unit = Indian Rupee (INR) INR52.75 = US$1 US$1.00 = SDR 0.64843 FISCAL YEAR April 1 – March 31 ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS ABL Activity Based Learning ADIP Assistance to Disabled Persons for purchase/fittings of Aids/Appliances ALM Active Learning Methodology ASER Annual Status of Education Report AWPB Annual Work Plan and Budget BRC Block Resource Center CCE Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation CISCE Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations CLAP Children’s Learning Acceleration Program CLIP Children’s Language Improvement Program CPS Country Partnership Strategy CRC Cluster Resource Center CWSN Children with Special Needs DEA Department of Economic Affairs DEES District Elementary Education Committee DEEP District Elementary Education Plan DFID Department for International Development (UK) DIET District Institute for Education and Training DISE District Information System for Education DP Development Partners DPC District Project Coordinator DPEP District Primary Education Program DSEL Department of School Education and Literacy EC European Commission ECCE Early Childhood Care and Education EDI Education Development Index EE Elementary Education EEB Elementary Education Bureau EFA Education for All EGS Education Guarantee Scheme EMIS Education Management Information System FMR Financial Monitoring Report GDP Gross Domestic Product GER Gross Enrolment Ratio GIA Grant in Aid GoI Government of India ICRR Implementation Completion and Results Report IDA International Development Association ii IED Inclusive Education Development INR Indian National Rupee IRR Internal Rate of Return IRT Item Response Theory JRM Joint Review Mission KGBV Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya LEP Learning Enhancement Programs M&E Monitoring and Evaluation MDGs Millennium Development Goals MDM Mid-Day Meal Scheme MHRD Ministry of Human Resource Development MoF Ministry of Finance NAS National Assessment Survey NCERT National Council for Educational Research and Training NCF National Curriculum Framework NER Net Enrolment Ratio NFE Non-Formal Education NGO Non-Governmental Organization NUEPA National University for Educational Planning and Administration NPEGEL National Program for Girls’ Education at the Elementary Level NPV Net Present Value NSS National Sample Survey OOSC Out of School Child/Children PAB Project Approval Board PDO Project Development Objective PMIS Project Management Information System PRI Panchayati Raj Institutions PTA Parents-Teachers Association PTR Pupil Teacher Ratio RMSA Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan ROC Regional Operational Committee RTE Right to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 QER quality Enhancement Review SC Scheduled Caste SCERT State Council of Education Research and Training SFG Special Focus Group SIEMAT State Institutes of Educational Management and Training SIL Sector Investment Loan SMC School Management Committee SPO State Project Office SSA Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan ST Scheduled Tribe SWAp Sector-wide Approach TC Technical Cooperation TES Teacher Education Scheme TET Teacher Eligibility Test TLP Teaching Learning Equipment TLM Teaching Learning Material TPE Third Party Evaluation TSG Technical Support Group UEE Universal Elementary Education iii UG Union Government UT Union Territories VEC Village Education Committee Vice President: Isabel M. Guerrero Country Director: Onno Ruhl Sector Manager: Amit Dar Project Team Leader: Deepa Sankar/ Shabnam Sinha ICR Team Leader: Toby Linden iv REPUBLIC OF INDIA SECOND ELEMENTARY EDUCATION PROJECT (SSA II) CONTENTS Data Sheet A. Basic Information vii B. Key Dates vii C. Ratings Summary vii D. Sector and Theme Codes viii E. Bank Staff viii F. Results Framework Analysis viii G. Ratings of Project Performance in ISRs xiii H. Restructuring xiii I. Disbursement Graph xiii 1. Project Context, Development Objectives and Design ..................................................... 1 1.1 Context at Appraisal ................................................................................................... 1 1.2 Original Project Development Objectives (PDO) and Key Indicators (as approved) 2 1.3 Revised PDO (as approved by original approving authority) and Key Indicators, and reasons/justification .......................................................................................................... 2 1.4 Main Beneficiaries ...................................................................................................... 2 1.5 Original Components (as approved) ........................................................................... 3 1.6 Revised Components .................................................................................................. 3 1.7 Other significant changes ............................................................................................ 3 2. Key Factors Affecting Implementation and Outcomes .................................................... 5 2.1 Project Preparation, Design and Quality at Entry ....................................................... 5 2.2 Implementation ........................................................................................................... 6 2.3 Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Design, Implementation, and Utilization ........... 8 2.4 Safeguard and Fiduciary Compliance ......................................................................... 8 2.5 Post-completion Operation/Next Phase .................................................................... 11 3. Assessment of Outcomes ................................................................................................ 11 3.1 Relevance of Objectives, Design and Implementation ............................................. 11 3.2 Achievement of Project Development Objectives .................................................... 12 3.3 Efficiency .................................................................................................................. 18 3.4 Justification of Overall Outcome Rating .................................................................. 19 3.5 Overarching Themes, Other Outcomes and Impacts ................................................ 20 4. Assessment of Risk to Development Outcome ............................................................... 21 5. Assessment of Bank and Borrower Performance ........................................................... 22 5.1 Bank Performance ..................................................................................................... 22 5.2 Borrower Performance .............................................................................................. 23 6. Lessons Learned.............................................................................................................. 24 v 7. Comments on Issues Raised by Borrower/Implementing Agencies/Partners................. 25 Annex 1. Project Costs and Financing ................................................................................ 26 Annex 2: Output by Components ....................................................................................... 28 Annex 3. Economic and Financial Analysis ....................................................................... 40 Annex 4. Bank Lending and Implementation Support/Supervision Processes................... 45 Annex 5. Beneficiary Survey Results ................................................................................. 47 Annex 6. Stakeholder Workshop Report and Results ......................................................... 48 Annex 7. Summary of Borrower's ICR and/or Comments on Draft ICR ........................... 49 Annex 8. Comments of Co-financiers and Other Partners/Stakeholders ............................ 68 Annex 9. List of Supporting Documents ............................................................................ 70 List of Figures Figure 1: Trends in School Enrolment Rates among 6-10 years and 11-13 years children.... 13 Figure 2: Trends in School Enrolment rates among 6-13 years by gender ............................. 14 Figure 3: Trends in School Enrolment rate among 6-13 years by social groups .................... 14 Figure 4: Proportion of Children in elementary schools attending different types of schools in 2009-2010 ............................................................................................................................... 20 Figure 5: Proportion of Children in age group of 6-10 and 11-13yrs not attending school ... 34 Figure 6: Trends in School Enrolment rates among 6-13 years by gender ............................. 36 Figure 7: Trends in School Enrolment rates among 6-13 years by social gaps ...................... 36 Figure 8: Trends in School Enrolment rates among 6-13 years by gender ............................. 36 Figure 9: Trends in School Enrollment rates among 6-13 years among richest and poorest households............................................................................................................................... 36 Figure 10: Trends in Primary Completion Rates among 13-14 years old .............................. 37 Figure 11: Trends in Elementary Completion Rates among 15-16 year olds ......................... 37 Figure 12: Trends in Elementary Completion rates by social groups ..................................... 37 Figure 13: Trends in Elementary Completion rates by location ............................................. 37 Figure 14: Earnings premium in India, by Levels of education ............................................. 40 Figure 15: Coefficients of simple Mincerian earnings regression in India, by education level ................................................................................................................................................. 42 Figure 16: Earnings profile by age and education levels - Three year moving average smoothened lines - NSS 66th round 2009/10 ......................................................................... 43 List of Tables Table 1: Project Outcome Evaluation Scores ......................................................................... 19 Table 2: Project Cost by Component ...................................................................................... 26 Table 3: Results Monitoring Framework ................................................................................ 28 Table 4: Teachers Trained ...................................................................................................... 38 Table 5: Number of Children to Whom Free Textbooks Have Been Delivered .................... 38 Table 6: Multi-scenario Rates of Return and Present Value of Net Benefits ......................... 44 vi A. Basic Information India: Elementary Country: India Project Name: Education (Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan II) Project ID: P102547 L/C/TF Number(s): IDA-44170,IDA-47000 ICR Date: 03/28/2013 ICR Type: Core ICR GOVERNMENT OF Lending Instrument: SIL Borrower: INDIA Original Total XDR 364.40M Disbursed Amount: XDR 847.00M Commitment: Revised Amount: XDR 847.00M Environmental Category: B Implementing Agencies: MHRD, 35 State/UT Implementation Societies Cofinanciers and Other External Partners: DFID, EU B. Key Dates Revised / Actual Process Date Process Original Date Date(s) Concept Review: 04/10/2007 Effectiveness: 09/12/2008 09/12/2008 Appraisal: 08/19/2007 Restructuring(s): 05/07/2010 Approval: 05/15/2008 Mid-term Review: 07/31/2009 01/15/2010 Closing: 03/31/2010 09/30/2012 C. Ratings Summary C.1 Performance Rating by ICR Outcomes: Moderately Satisfactory Risk to Development Outcome: Substantial Bank Performance: Moderately Satisfactory Borrower Performance: Moderately Satisfactory C.2 Detailed Ratings of Bank and Borrower Performance (by ICR) Bank Ratings Borrower Ratings Quality at Entry: Satisfactory Government: Satisfactory Moderately Satisfactory Implementing Moderately Satisfactory Quality of Supervision: Agency/Agencies: Overall Bank Moderately Satisfactory Overall Borrower Moderately Satisfactory Performance: Performance: vii C.3 Quality at Entry and Implementation Performance Indicators Implementation QAG Assessments (if Indicators Rating Performance any) Potential Problem Project Quality at Entry No None at any time (Yes/No): (QEA): Problem Project at any time Quality of Supervision No None (Yes/No): (QSA): DO rating before Moderately Closing/Inactive status: Satisfactory D. Sector and Theme Codes Original Actual Sector Code (as % of total Bank financing) Central government administration 10 10 Primary education 90 90 Theme Code (as % of total Bank financing) Education for all 100 100 E. Bank Staff Positions At ICR At Approval Vice President: Isabel M. Guerrero Praful C. Patel Country Director: Onno Ruhl Isabel M. Guerrero Sector Manager: Amit Dar Michelle Riboud Project Team Leader: Deepa Sankar/ Shabnam Sinha Amit Dar/Venita Kaul ICR Team Leader: Toby Linden ICR Primary Author: Sati Achath F. Results Framework Analysis Project Development Objectives (from Project Appraisal Document) The project’s PDO was to significantly increase the number of 6-14 year old children, especially from special focus groups, enrolled, regularly attending and completing elementary education and demonstrating basic learning levels. Revised Project Development Objectives (as approved by original approving authority) The objective was not revised. However, targets set to be achieved for some of the PDO indicators got revised. viii (a) PDO Indicator(s) Original Target Actual Value Values (from Formally Revised Achieved at Indicator Baseline Value approval Target Values Completion or documents) Target Years Indicator 1 : Number of Out of school children Value quantitative or 13.5 million (2005) 4.9 million 5.1 million 8.15 million (2009) Qualitative) Date achieved 31-Mar-2005 07-May-2010 30-Dec-2009 Target likely to be met. A continuation of the trend from 2005 to 2009 would mean the target Comments would be met, though a new Independent Household Survey is underway to get the latest figure. (incl. % Around 3 million out-of-school children were officially identified in 2012-13 by State achievement) governments. Indicator 2 : Increase in enrolments 124.4 million in primary Increase in 137. 1million in primary enrolments to be Value 43.7 million at upper commensurate with 62.1 million in upper quantitative or primary the decline in OOSC primary Qualitative) (DISE 2005-06) (DISE 2011-12) Date achieved 31-Mar-2005 31-Mar-2012 30-Jun-2012 Comments Achieved. Net increase in enrollment of around 12 million in primary and 19 million at upper (incl. % primary levels from baseline data (2005-06); decline in out of school children about 10 million. achievement) Enrollment shares of girls, SCs and STs in primary education is maintained or increased relative Indicator 3 : to their share in population at national and State levels Girls Girls Share in population: 47.90% Share in enrolment: Share in enrolment: Primary: 48.35% Primary: 47.79% U. Pry: 48.63% U. Pry: 45.8% SC SC Value Share in population: Enrollment shares of 17.60% girls, SC and ST Share in enrolment: quantitative or Qualitative) Share in enrolment: reflect their share in Primary: 20.09% Primary: 18.95% population U. Pry: 19.14% U. Pry: 19.42% ST ST Share in population: 9.34% Share in enrolment: Share in enrolment: Primary: 11.40% Primary: 9.56% U. Pry: 9.86% U. Pry: 9.28% Date achieved 31-March-2005 3/31/10 30-Jun-2012 Comments Achieved. (incl. % achievement) Number of Children with Special Needs (CWSN) identified and enrolled in schools / home Indicator 4 : based education ix CWSN identified: 2.53 Increase/ million maintain enrolment to CWSN identified: 3.27 Enrolled: 2.18 million commensurate with the Value million (2006-07: PMIS Report CWSN identified quantitative or Enrolled: 2.9 million from Inclusive Qualitative) 2011-12: PMIS Report Education for Disabled from IED Unit Unit) Date achieved 31-Mar-2006 31-Mar-2012 30-Jun-2012 Comments (incl. Achieved. Increase in the number of CWSN identified by 0.74 million and increase in enrolment % achievement) by 0.72 million during the period, a difference which is not statistically significant. Indicator 5 : Transition Rates from Primary to Upper Primary Value 83% Improve it to at least Improve it to at least 86.58 quantitative or (DISE 2005-06) 89% 85% (DISE 2011-12) Qualitative) Date achieved 31-Mar-2005 03/31/10 07-May-2010 30-Jun-2012 Achieved against revised targets. In 2007-08 (baseline data for SSA II AF RF), transition rate Comments (incl. was 81.13%, the target was reset to increase it to at least 85%. Progress was good and targets (%achievement) were exceeded. Transition rates among boys is 86.4% and among girls is 86.8% Indicator 6 : Retention rate at primary & elementary level increased Primary 71% 75% 80% 74% Elementary: 32% Improve it to at 45% 54.8% (States with Elementary least 40% Value stage I – VIII) quantitative or Qualitative) 45.5% (States with Improve it to at 70% 80.6% Elementary is Class I- least 52% VII) Date achieved 31-Mar-2005 31-Mar-2012 07-May-2010 30-Jun-2012 Mostly achieved. As per SSA II AF baseline figures (2007-08), retention rate at primary was 73.1%, hence target was revised to 80%; At elementary level (States with Gr 1-VIII baseline was 38.37% and for states with Gr 1-VII cycle, 56.35%), the targets were revised to 45% and Comments (incl. 70% respectively % achievement) While there are strong gains at post-primary level, revised targets turned out to be overambitious at primary level. Indicator 7 : Improvements in Learning levels in grade 3, 5 and 7/8 Results for grades 3, 5 Results for only grade 5 Value and 7/8 available using available using Item quantitative or classical testing theory Response Theory (IRT) Qualitative) analysis. analysis Date achieved 31-Mar-2005 31-Mar-2012 30-Jun-2012 Not achieved. Baseline learning assessment results (using round II of Classical Testing analysis). Comments New assessments done building capacity in NCERT and using internationally recognized good (incl. % practice IRT methodology. New NAS Report with IRT analysis for Gr 5 ready for June 2012. achievement) Gr VIII test under preparation incorporating lessons from Gr V test Owing to new and improved methodology put in place – results not comparable with baseline. Indicator 8 : Direct project beneficiaries x 135 million students enrolled in government 147.2 million students + aided schools enrolled in government Value + aided schools quantitative or Of which Female Of which Female Qualitative) beneficiaries: 47.4% beneficiaries: 48.3% (2011) Date achieved 31-Mar-2005 31-Mar-2012 30-Jun-2012 Comments (incl. Core indicator added during implementation; no target established for total beneficiaries. (% achievement) (b) Intermediate Outcome Indicator(s) Actual Value Original Target Formally Achieved at Indicator Baseline Value Values (from Revised Target Completion or Target approval documents) Values Years Indicator 1 : System for learning assessment at the primary level Yes, but using Classical Modern system for Yes, a modern system Testing theory analysis learning assessment for learning assessment Value such as IRT measurement is now in quantitative or established place and the first Qualitative) testing using IRT was done for grade 5 during 2010. Date achieved 31-Mar-2005 31-Mar-2012 30-Jun-2012 Comments (incl. % Achieved. achievement) Indicator 2 : Utility of the learning assessment system Value quantitative or 2.00 4.00 4.00 Qualitative) Date achieved 31-Mar-2005 31-Mar-2012 30-Jun-2012 Achieved. This rating is based on OPCS’s core Education sector indicators’ definition. As per this, if all the three following aspects/ criteria are addressed through NAS, it gets a rating of 4 Comments (out of 4). These are (i) Data are analyzed and results are reported to education policymakers (incl. % and/or the public; (ii) Results are reported for at least one of the following student subgroups: achievement) gender, urban/rural, geographic region; and (iii) The assessment exercise is repeated at least once every 5 years for the same subject area(s) and grade(s). Indicator 3 : Number of districts with Pupil Teacher Ratio greater than 40 Value quantitative or 151 151 75 104 Qualitative) Date achieved 07-May-2010 30-June-2012 The indicator was originally (SSA II PAD) was the # of districts with PTR>60. This was Comments revised during SSA II AF to # of districts with PTR>40. This target was not achieved. (incl. % achievement) per SSA II PAD, PTR at primary was 41:1, which improved to 34:1 in 2007-08 (SSA II AF RF baseline) and now to 30:1 in 2011-12. Indicator 4 : Number of additional qualified primary teachers resulting from project interventions. Value 795,000 (till 2007-08, SSA I Cumulative target Cumulative # of quantitative or period) (SSA I & II) till 2011- teachers recruited till xi Qualitative) 12 was to recruit 1.9 2011-12 are 1.27 million teachers million Date achieved 31-Mar-2007 30-Sept-2012 30-Jun-2012 Partially achieved. During 2007/08 and 2009/10, around 235,200 teachers were additionally Comments appointed. As on As per SSA II AF RF, shortfall in the number of teachers (hence total teacher (incl. % recruitment required) was 320,000. During 2009/10 and 2011/12 period, 186,800 teachers were achievement) additionally provided. Thus, the number of teachers recruited since 2007-08 under SSA (SSA II phase) till 2011-12 are 422,000 or around 34% of all SSA teachers recruited. Number of additional classrooms built or rehabilitated at the primary level resulting from project Indicator 5 : interventions. 696214 (till 2007-08, SSA I Cumulative target Cumulative Value period) (SSA I & II) till 2011- achievement in ACRs quantitative or 12 was to build 1.8 till 2011-12 are 1.38 Qualitative) million Additional million Classrooms (ACR) Date achieved 31-Mar-2005 30-Sept-2012 31-Dec-2012 Comments Partially achieved. Of the total number of 1.38 m ACRs built during SSA period, 650,000 were (incl.% constructed during SSA II period (around 48% of ACRs). achievement) Indicator 6 : Number of States with PS:UPS >2.5:1 Value 15 (DISE 2007-08) Reduce the number to 6 states quantitative or 10 states or less (DISE 2011-12) Qualitative) Date achieved 31-Mar-2005 30-Sept-2012 30-Jun-2012 Comments (incl. % Achieved. achievement) Indicator 7 : Improvement in % schools with drinking water facility Value 86.75% (DISE 2007-08) 90% 95% quantitative or (DISE 2011-12) Qualitative) Date achieved 2007-08 30-Sept-2012 30-Jun-2012 Comments Achieved. This indicator, though it was tracked during the supervision missions of SSA II, was (incl. % formally included in output indicators only in SSA II AF RF achievement) Indicator 8 : Improvement in the % of schools with common toilets Value 76% quantitative or 62.67% (DISE 2007-08) 65% (DISE 2011-12) Qualitative) Date achieved 2007-08 30-Sept-2012 30-Jun-2012 Comments Achieved. This indicator, though it was tracked during the supervision missions of SSA II, was (incl. % formally included in RF output indicators only in SSA II AF RF. achievement) Indicator 9 : Improvement in the % of schools with separate toilets for girls Primary level: 40% 45% Primary level: Value 62% quantitative or All Schools: 57% (DISE 2007-08) 62% 69%(All) Qualitative) (DISE 10-11) Date achieved 2007-08 30-Sept-2012 30-Jun-2012 Comments Achieved. This indicator, though tracking during the supervision missions of SSA II, was (incl. % formally included in RF output indicators only in SSA II AF RF achievement) xii G. Ratings of Project Performance in ISRs Actual Date ISR No. DO IP Disbursements Archived (USD millions) 1 09/19/2008 Satisfactory Satisfactory 0.00 2 02/12/2009 Satisfactory Satisfactory 215.10 3 08/14/2009 Satisfactory Satisfactory 215.10 4 02/12/2010 Satisfactory Satisfactory 570.41 5 12/16/2010 Satisfactory Satisfactory 822.87 6 06/20/2011 Satisfactory Satisfactory 822.87 7 01/11/2012 Satisfactory Moderately Satisfactory 1317.89 8 06/27/2012 Satisfactory Moderately Satisfactory 1317.89 9 09/26/2012 Moderately Satisfactory Moderately Satisfactory 1317.89 H. Restructuring (if any) Additional Finance approved with changes in some indicator targets approved on March 18, 2010. I. Disbursement Profile xiii 1. Project Context, Development Objectives and Design 1.1 Context at Appraisal Country and Sector Background: India, a country of over a billion people with a per capita Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of about $1,046 (2007) at the start of the project, has made strong progress in reducing poverty and enhancing access to education. Poverty rates have fallen from 45 percent in the 1980s to below 25 percent in the last two decades, with per capita GDP now at $1,410 (2011). Significant progress was also made on human development indicators –life expectancy more than doubled from 31 years in 1947 to 65 years in 2012 and adult literacy more than quadrupled, from 18 percent in 1951 to 74 percent in 2011. However, in spite of all these achievements, the most populous states remained lagging behind others in many economic, social and human development indicators, making the growth and development story of India a more complex one. In 2007, Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), Government of India’s flagship program for universalizing elementary education of satisfactory quality, had completed five years of implementation. The Bank and other development partners had supported SSA with the first phase of their support (2004-2007).1 There were considerable achievements – especially on the access agenda. The number of out of school children were reduced from 25 million to 13.5 million, gender parity was close to being achieved and substantial progress had been made in terms of enhancing access to other social groups (schedule castes and scheduled tribes) and the transition rate from primary to upper primary education had increased from 75 percent to 83 percent. While these were significant, GoI realized that challenges still remained, in terms of access to the most marginalized and at the upper primary levels and on improving education quality and requested the Bank and other development partners to continue supporting the program. By the time of SSA II Additional Financing , the Government of India had passed the Right to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 (RTE), which became effective in April 2010. The SSA program was designated as the official vehicle to implement RTE and SSA norms and framework were revised to fully align with the RTE provisions. Rationale for Bank assistance: SSA II was the second phase of external support to the Government’s continuing SSA program. The rationale for Bank support was compelling. First, the Bank and other Development Partners (DPs) had successfully supported the elementary education sub-sector in India over the past decade through the GoI’s District Primary Education Program (DPEP), and SSA I. The Bank’s 2004 Country Assistance Strategy (CAS) highlighted the importance of supporting SSA - both in terms of meeting GoI’s development and poverty reduction goals, as well as moving towards the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) on a global scale, particularly Universal Primary Education, Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment. Second, continuing support for SSA could facilitate the broadening and deepening of the quality and equity agenda, the success of which was critical to achieving the goals of the program. Third, supporting the achievement of high quality elementary 1 Prior to supporting SSA, the Bank and other development partners had supported the Government’s District Primary Education Program (DPEP), through eight projects, some of which ran concurrent to SSA. 1 education was a critical foundation for higher levels of education and skills which were likely to have a significant impact on economic development. Finally, while the DPs’ financial contribution would only be small relative to the Government’s own resources, past experience had demonstrated the value of the sector wide approach to improve implementation of the entire government program by bringing in comparative global experience, designing the rules of the whole program, and support implementation, monitoring and evaluation through technical assistance. 1.2 Original Project Development Objectives (PDO) and Key Indicators (as approved) The project’s PDO was to significantly increase the number of 6-14 year old children, especially from special focus groups, enrolled, regularly attending and completing elementary education and demonstrating basic learning levels. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) were:  Reduction in the number of out of school children from 13.4 million (2005) to 4.9 million.  Enrolment shares of girls, Scheduled Castes (SCs), and , Scheduled Tribes (STs), in primary and upper primary maintained or increased, relative to their share in the population at the national and state levels  Attendance rates of students at primary and upper primary level increases from 70% and 75% respectively to 85% and 90%  Retention rate at primary level increases from 71% to 75%  Transition rate from primary to upper primary increases from 81.3% to 89%  Learning levels adequately and regularly monitored;  Improvement in learning levels at Grade 3 1.3 Revised PDO (as approved by original approving authority) and Key Indicators, and reasons/justification The objective was not revised. The Results Framework was revised with additional financing in March 2010 for greater realism and to include targets for the additional years through 2012. In particular, new baselines for the Indian FY 2007-08 (in a few cases the baseline is 2009) were set to provide greater realism to the target indicators rather than relying on 2005 baseline data from the PAD, and targets of the three key KPIs (number of out of school children, the transition rate from primary to upper primary, and the retention rate at the primary level) were modified2. 1.4 Main Beneficiaries The expected beneficiaries of the project included:  Children (particularly girls, SC and ST children, and children with disability) in the 6-14 year age group who were out of school and who would enroll as a result of the program efforts and investments to reach out to all children. 2 Changes in the targets for some results indicators were however not labeled as restructuring in the ISR. Nevertheless, the changes in the project were approved by the Board together with the Additional Financing. 2  All children in the school system from Grade 1-8 would benefit from the SSA interventions to improve quality of education, through the provision of additional teachers, school facilities, free textbooks, supplementary teaching and learning materials etc.  Other beneficiaries would include various institutions and individuals expected to benefit from the implementation experience as well as the capacity building efforts, including: National Council for Educational Research and Training, (NCERT); National University for Educational Planning and Administration, (NUEPA); State Councils for Educational Research and Training (SCERTs); State Institutes of Educational Management and Training (SIEMATs); the Block Resource Centers (BRCs) and Cluster Resource Centers (CRCs); and the Village Education Committees (VECs); and Non-Governmental Organization (NGOs). 1.5 Original Components (as approved) The core activities financed under SSA II included: (A) Improving Quality with Equity: The quality enhancement framework with a clear focus on education service delivery and capacity building, with the following main pillars: ensuring basic provisioning (teacher training, textbooks, educational materials, etc.) to create enabling learning conditions for all children; capacity building and academic support to State and sub-State structures; monitoring of educational outcomes; and, research and evaluation studies. (B) Universalizing Access and Promoting Equity: A combination of demand and supply side interventions were financed to enable the hardest-to-reach children to attend school. These would include the establishment, construction and extension of primary and upper primary schools and classrooms in districts where access was still an issue, and provision of teachers. Demand-side interventions included provision of free textbooks and other materials to reduce household costs related to elementary schooling. 1.6 Revised Components The components were not revised. 1.7 Other significant changes Additional Financing: An additional credit of SDR 482.6 million equivalent to US$ 750 million was approved in March 2010. Background: While SSA II was on track to achieve its PDO, the agenda to ensure that all children completed elementary education and achieved satisfactory learning levels remained unfinished. The GoI requested DPs for further assistance to complement GoI resources to address this ambitious agenda under SSA. Additional financing covered a financing gap in FY2009-10, generated by strong implementation capacity of the 35 Indian States and Union Territories and higher than expected SSA II expenditures in FY2008-09, which had led to full disbursement of the original IDA credit ahead of schedule. Without the additional financing to cover the financing gap for FY2009-10, and to help finance the costs associated with additional and expanded activities to enhance the impact of the project for the Indian fiscal years of 2010- 11 and 2011-12, achievement of the project’s development objectives would have been delayed and the Bank’s technical and fiduciary support would not have had its intended impact. 3 Expanded and Additional Activities: The additional financing supported:  Additional expansion of primary schools (Grades 1-5) into elementary schools (Grades 1-8), construction of additional upper primary classrooms, procurement of teaching and learning equipment (e.g. for science) and classroom furniture, hiring of additional subject-specific upper primary teachers, distribution of textbooks to all upper primary students.  Eight States to convert their present elementary education system of 7 grades to 8 grades. This implied curriculum reform, recruitment and training of subject-specific 8th grade teachers and provision of textbooks.  Assistance to States for curriculum renewal, based on the National Curriculum Framework of 2005. This required revision of State textbooks and new forms of student learning assessment which emphasized continuous and comprehensive evaluation (CCE), and related teacher professional development.  Recruitment of additional teachers and implementation of teacher professional development programs.  Improved teacher performance and student learning outcomes through rollout of Learning Enhancement Programs (LEPs), focused on reading and basic numeracy in the early grades, in more than half of the country’s 1.2 million elementary schools.  Further strengthening of academic support to schools to increase school-based academic support through Block Resource Centers (BRCs) and Cluster Resource Centers (CRCs), and to ensure that resource persons (RP) hired to provide this academic support are qualified for the upper primary level.  Further strengthening of School Management Committees/Village Education Committees (SMCs/VECs), by training their members in the preparation and implementation of School Development Plans, as well as in their academic oversight and fiduciary responsibilities. Changes to SSA resulting from the Right to Education (RTE) Act, 2009. As per RTE, a policy initiative having legal sanction, ensuring compulsory education means “compulsory admission, attendance and completion of elementary education� by all children in the 6-14 years age group. MHRD designated SSA, its flagship program for universalizing elementary education in the country, to be the vehicle through which RTE provisions are implemented. The Act, which came into effect after project effectiveness, brought several significant changes into the SSA program. The IDA Credit continued to fund the whole program. The significant changes were:  Requires each State had to come up with the RTE state rules notification, and take up systemic measures like setting up State Council for Protection of Child Rights (SCPCR) in each state.  Ensured that eight states moved from 7 year to 8 year cycle for elementary education,  Gives new norms for school access for each habitation; requires complementary transport and residential facilities; and prescribes higher minimum standards prescribed in terms of school facilities and infrastructure for all schools.  Requires age appropriate enrolments, which necessitates special training programs to improve the skills and knowledge of out-of-school children to allow them to enter school with their age group. 4  Lays down norms and standards, both in terms of teacher qualifications and terms and conditions of service of teachers as well in terms of the Pupil Teacher Ratio (PTR 30:1 for primary and 35:1 at upper primary, to be maintained at school level).  Qualifying in a Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) is now mandatory for all existing and aspiring primary and middle school teachers in the country.  RTE endorses National Curriculum Framework 2005 (NCF 2005) as the framework for initiating quality interventions and goals.  Provides incentives like free textbooks to all children at the elementary level (as against that to children from SC/ST and girl categories under SSA) and provides free uniforms to all children at the elementary level  There is a 25 percent reservation in the first grade in private unaided schools for children belonging to disadvantaged groups and weaker sections. The RTE also mandates that schools cannot screen or filter entry to school. 2. Key Factors Affecting Implementation and Outcomes 2.1 Project Preparation, Design and Quality at Entry The overall quality at entry was satisfactory. (There was no IEG report.) At the time of project preparation, the government had demonstrated a high level of commitment to the objectives of the project. The program covered over one million government and aided schools in all districts in the country, and had national leadership with the Prime Minister as the Chairman of the National Elementary Education Mission. Political support was further augmented through passage of the 86th Constitutional Amendment (2002) which gives every child between the ages of 6 and 14 the right to elementary education. The high level of political will was reflected in consistent budgetary increases, especially with revenue generated through a 2 percent education cess imposed on income, service tax and capital gains tax. In addition, as mentioned above, the RTE came into effect prior to the SSA additional financing (2010). Building on lessons learned during the implementation of SSA I, the program had evolved in several ways including:  The approach to financing became more performance and reform based. Cost-sharing between the Central Government and the States provided a built-in incentive for States to make maximum use of centrally provided grants; norms were made more flexible and the Annual Work Plan and Budget3 (AWP&B) approval process ensured that the Districts with the greatest needs would receive the largest amount of resources. The funding mechanism itself provided incentives, ensured equity and rewarded implementation progress.  Enhanced flexibility was built in to support differentiated needs to address the challenges of diverse local contexts. Greater flexibility was provided to states and districts to respond to 3 The District Annual Work Plan and Budget (AWP&B) process was at the heart of SSA implementation. Practically all SSA expenditures and activities were driven by the AWP&Bs prepared by about 600 districts of the country. It was within the process of AWP&B development, endorsement, appraisal, approval and monitoring that the SSA Framework for Implementation became operationalized throughout the country. 5 their special needs, and to combine this flexibility with accountability for agreed targets and this was reflected in the AWPBs.  To enhance focus on quality, greater attention was paid to classroom processes as well as outcomes. Priority was given to monitoring of classroom processes and learning, providing states flexibility to innovate on interventions that emphasized improved pedagogy, and providing local academic support to teachers to address the diverse needs of classrooms.  Greater use of data in planning and monitoring. Emphasis was placed on improving data quality and its increased use in decision making. Special focus was provided to address the capacity constraints to implement a program of student assessments and to evaluate the impact of programs on outcomes and quality. A Technical Cooperation (TC) Fund, financed by DFID, to enhance capacity at both the central and state levels for this purpose was put into place. The Bank’s support to SSA through a Sector Wide Approach (SWAp) facilitated a programmatic approach to address the issues in a holistic manner through collective dialogues and focus on sector-wide results. Since a SWAp encourages harmonization of borrower and donor fiduciary system by using country systems for financial management and procurement activities, the effort was to enhance government’s own fiduciary system, build internal capacity and sustainability, and strengthen government ownership. The Bank’s partnership with other DPs (DIFD and EU) and with the Ministry of Human Resource Development helped it to leverage the relatively small resource contribution4 with greater supervisory, monitoring and evaluation and technical improvements. The support also added value in terms of bringing its comparative global experience, and enhancing implementation, analytical/technical support, monitoring and evaluation and leveraging results on the ground. Risk Mitigation Measures. The PAD identified weak fiduciary capacity especially at decentralized levels, inadequate capacity to implement the program in lagging states, and challenges associated with improving quality of education in the short-term. The risks were appropriately identified and handled effectively in project design. Mitigation measures proposed were realistic and were informed by lessons learned during the implementation of the SSA project. 2.2 Implementation Implementation progress remained satisfactory or moderately satisfactory during the project period. Strong and continued government commitment was central to successful implementation of the program and for addressing governance constraints to effective service delivery. Many reform 4 Bank and DPs contributed less than 10% of total SSA budget allocation. The United Kingdom’s Department for International Development (DFID) co-financed the project with about US$ 300 million including a Technical Cooperation (TC) Fund for approximately US$ 10 million, and again provided additional financing for approximately US$ 220 million including an additional US$ 8 million for the TC Fund. The European Union (EU) provided approximately US$ 100 million via the SWAp, 6 actions required fundamental institutional changes (e.g. merit-based teacher recruitment, greater involvement of communities in decision making, strengthening roles and responsibilities of institutions all the way down to the school level). MHRD also engaged pro-actively with counterparts in MoF and the Planning Commission to ensure adequate funding for the project. Having a robust SSA framework, which served as the project’s operation manual, facilitated the states to prepare high quality annual work plans. Further, the whole process of planning, appraisal, implementation and monitoring were well organized. This mitigated the weaknesses in staffing levels in implementing agencies, especially at the local level. The SWAp strengthened donor collaboration and coordination and minimized the transaction costs and reporting requirements for the government. The SIL instrument used for SSA provided the multi-year support for implementation of sector-wide reforms. Additionally, it contributed toward an alignment of priorities in the education sector between the Bank, DFID and EU, and a strong partnership between the donors and the government remained over the project period. Regular and sustained dialogue between the DPs and the national and state governments and stakeholders at the district and school level facilitated steady implementation progress in most aspects of the program. Technical inputs from the Bank, including analytical reports and just-in- time policy and technical assistance notes, supported design and implementation of key activities. The Joint Review Missions (JRMs) under SSA II were the hallmark of the partnerships with the government as well as the DPs. In these missions, each agency contributed experts in particular areas, thus maximizing the supervision impact and worked alongside government experts. Further, the JRM mechanism provided the forum to shift the program’s focus onto quality issues, with greater dialogues on curriculum, pedagogy; text book preparation, teacher development and training, etc. There were two main factors that slowed down implementation and hindered project progress. First, several states faced implementation challenges due to limited capacity at state, and district levels. Availability of engineers and regular monitoring personnel at the district and sub district level was a problem in many states. States like Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh for example, had to struggle with accelerating their pace of construction in providing classrooms for all their learners. District level staffing was well below norms in most of the large spending states. Of particular importance was the State Project Directors, who in several States were fulfilling several positions (for States implementing very large SSA programs this was of particular concern). Lack of continuity of key personnel, including the State Project Directors, was an additional problem in most States. This had an impact on quality of expenditure considering that outlays continued to increase every year. Second, these capacity constraints meant that the project faced continuous challenges in translating budgetary allocations into expenditures. While impetus given by the RTE Act meant that budget allocations for the SSA program increased substantially during the SSA II period (2007-08 till 2011-12) from Rs. 20,000 crore to Rs. 60,000 crore (about US$12 billion), states had a difficult time absorbing these additional resources with expenditures growing from about Rs. 15,000 crores to over Rs. 38,000 crores during this period. 7 2.3 Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Design, Implementation, and Utilization M&E design. The project had developed clear Project Outcome Indicators and Results Indicators to assess progress in meeting the project implementation targets and objectives using government systems. M&E implementation. The District Information System for Education (DISE) was used for monitoring school level indicators. School Report Cards were available on the Internet where in all school related information was provided. Project Monitoring Information System (PMIS) was used to track progress in project components. 41 independent Monitoring Institutions periodically reviewed the outcomes and implementation of SSA-II. The two JRMs per annum by the GoI and DPs reviewed the program in a comprehensive way including at state and local levels. Data from independent agencies like the National Sample Survey was used to triangulate results on access and equity. Special studies carried out under SSA-II tracked learning achievements and other quality related processes. These data were closely monitored and the actual figures were compared with the target values. However, monitoring was much more effectively done than evaluation; with only a few good quality evaluations carried out using SSA funds making it more difficult for states to learn from each other and expand successful programs. In the last year of the project, NCERT published program evaluations5 of the Learning Enhancement Programs in four states. Technical Cooperation Fund: SSA II included a Technical Cooperation Fund (TCF), which was financed by DFID. The TCF strengthened capacity of NCERT at the national level, and through it, at the state levels in learning assessments and the evaluation of quality initiatives. The TCF enabled the use of relevant national and international expertise and best practices in support of building capacities for enhancing measurement of learning levels at a standard that was equivalent to international levels. M&E utilization. Appropriate data collected from various sources was evaluated and used to inform decision-making on certain activities. For example, information from the annual household census/registers was used for community monitoring of out of school children and to devise local strategies to include these children. The quality of the DISE data has also improved significantly and triangulates well with other independent surveys. DISE data was used to identify Special Focus Districts, and was used to develop the Education Development Index (EDI) to facilitate the targeting of resources according to needs. Further, interventions were planned across all the districts in the country in different components like Access, Equity and Quality based on the analysis of the data. The use of data for planning and appraisal is evident from the extensive references to it in the Annual Work Plans of districts / states and the minutes of Project Appraisal Boards. 2.4 Safeguard and Fiduciary Compliance Safeguard Compliance: Safeguards compliance is assessed as satisfactory. 5 Activity Based Learning in the state of Tamil Nadu, Quality improvement initiatives called Adhaar in Himachal Pradesh, Multilingual education in Orissa; and Language improvement program in Andhra Pradesh. 8 Social Aspects. The Social Assessment appraised the SSA Results Framework and SSA implementation processes at State and District levels, examining the mechanisms and criteria used to ensure social and gender equity. The framework focused attention on Special Focus Groups (SFGs), notably girls, SCs and STs, disabled children and deprived urban children and special focus districts (SFD) and other socially/educationally disadvantaged groups. During the project period these groups were mainstreamed in State and District planning, appraisal and implementation, training and monitoring. MHRD prepared checklists for planning and appraising the States and Districts AWP&Bs to ensure that specific actions were taken for these special focus groups. The checklists were incorporated in the Planning & Appraisal Manual for use during implementation. Similarly, gender issues were addressed in all aspects of the program and in other related schemes with which the SSA converged. SSA continued to strengthen its convergence with other related Government programs such as the Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS), midday meal, women’s and girls’ empowerment (Mahila Samakhya), Drinking Water Mission, etc. This had contributed greatly towards equity and improved learning experiences for all children. The SSA framework called for special attention to be paid to tribal children, among “special focus groups�. Some of the specific interventions for tribal children in SSA included provision of school facilities in tribal areas, deploying and providing specific support for teachers in these areas, and preparing special instructional materials for tribal children. For girls, under the National Program for Girls’ Education at the Elementary Level (NPEGEL) program, special focus was given to education of girls from ST communities. The scheme was targeted to educationally backward blocks where the level of rural female literacy was less than the national average and the gender gap was above the national average, as also in blocks that had at least 5 percent ST population and where the ST female literacy rate was below 10 percent. Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya (KGBV) schools were provided for girls in educationally backward blocks, where a maximum of 75 percent girls enrolled were from ST, SC, OBC Minority Communities. Environmental aspects. Environmental issues were related mainly to civil works, including construction of toilets and water facilities in schools. The Environmental Assessment (EA) for the SSA II was undertaken and completed in September 2007, including findings from National Third Party Evaluation (TPE) conducted in several major states. National level monitoring consisted of TPE, periodic reviews by project implementing authorities and special monitoring visits by TSG and other members. National level monitoring was supplemented through the joint review missions (JRMs). These missions were effective in identifying shortcomings and highlighting good practices. DISE coverage had expanded across all schools and it provided critical information needed for planning. The JRM reports indicated that overall construction quality has been satisfactory. A further innovation under SSA I1 was the inclusion of environmental audits which were conducted by special teams using engineers within the State implementing agencies. All States and UTs were covered in a cycle of three years. The audits provided the State technical teams an opportunity to learn through self-evaluation. 9 Fiduciary Fiduciary compliance is rated as moderately satisfactory Financial Management (FM). Financial Management on SSA was guided by a comprehensive Manual on Financial Management (FM) and Procurement (FMP) that has been prepared, translated and disseminated across the states implementing the program. The following were the major strengths of SSA financial management: (i) funds flow was robust and used electronic channels for transfers to states, and in a significant number of states for transfers to districts; (ii) audit was as per a standard Terms of Reference (ToR) which requires an opinion of the truth and fairness of the financial statements, and reports provide insights in operation of the program in states; (iii) MHRD conducted quarterly review meetings of Finance Controllers of states; (iv) independent Concurrent Financial Review (CFR) provided useful insights to GOI/ DPs in operation of the program; and (v) roll out of financial accounting software (specifically in all large spending states) though manual account keeping is yet to be discontinued. On the other hand, some significant areas of concern included: (i) internal control was weak, including delays in bank reconciliations, weaknesses in internal audit and no settlement of advances; (ii) delays in receipt of audit reports; (iii) audit reports had continuously highlighted issues year after year but the same had not been effectively addressed; (iv) shortage of financial management staff at the district level (average vacancy is close to 50%) was a persistent problem across most of the large spending states, but had not been effectively addressed; and (v) block level staff were hired but significant vacancies remained. These issues, seen with the significant increase in SSA outlays, had led to a rating of Moderately Unsatisfactory since early 2011 till project closure. The inputs (capacity building measures) as mentioned above; though significant, have not been effective in addressing the shortcomings identified on SSA. Disbursement. Disbursements were made once a year around July/August for eligible expenditures incurred in the prior fiscal year (which ends in March). Disbursements were based on Financial Monitoring Reports (FMRs) covering the previous fiscal year, and program expenditures reported in the FMRs were subject to confirmation/certification by the annual audit reports of all implementing agencies and States. GoI submitted to the Development Partners a Consolidated Report of Audits summarizing the findings and certifying total program expenditures as reported in the individual audit reports of all implementing agencies by December 31st of each year. Procurement. Procurement for SSA II was carried out in accordance with SSA Manual for Financial Management and Procurement (FMP) Manual, which was developed for SSA-I during 2004, and the provisions stipulated in the Legal Agreement. The procurement under SSA II was handled at National, States, Districts, Bloc/Cluster and Village/School levels. The main items procured were civil works, teaching materials, textbooks, computers, consultant and non- consultant services. MHRD published financial and procurement audit reports of State implementing agencies on the SSA website. In addition, the States were required to disclose their procurement plans, contract opportunities, bid documents and contract award information on their website, as per Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) requirements. Post-reviews conducted during implementation showed no major procurement issues, and any issues raised were addressed effectively. 10 2.5 Post-completion Operation/Next Phase (a) Transition arrangements. The arrangements for continuing progress appear to be adequate: Technical, financial, commercial and institutional provisions: Based on the recommendations of 2010 Bordia Committee, SSA Norms have been modified to align them with the stipulations of the RTE Act. Accordingly, the framework of implementation of SSA has been rewritten. Further, government has approved about US$46 billion for SSA towards implementing RTE for the period 2010-15. Implementation of financial, economic and other policies required for effective operation and maintenance: The SSA Framework for implementation has been revised with effect from April 2011. Similarly, the Manual on Financial Management and Procurement was revised to reflect the new SSA framework for implementation. All rules of the program for financial management, procurement, reporting etc. which were developed with the Bank’s assistance would continue for future programs. Timely provision of all necessary inputs: The GoI has issued directives and guidelines to states and states to districts regarding development of work plan and budgets prioritized according to the stipulations and timelines of the RTE Act. These plans were approved to provide necessary resources to ensure the provisions and meet the timelines as mandated by the Act. Adequate staffing and management: The one area of concern is that, considering the increased quantum of outlay approved year after year, States will need more staff for the effective implementation of the programme, in addition, to filling up the existing vacant posts. (b) Monitoring and evaluation. A robust monitoring system for SSA is in place. At the grassroot levels, communities in general and SMCs in particular monitor the implementation. (c) Follow-up project. The GOI 12th Five Year Plan observes that improving school inputs are just the starting point in improving educational quality, and that the major challenge for the next Plan period is to focus on improving learning outcomes. This includes the need for high-quality independent measures of student learning levels and trajectories over time, improved teacher and school accountability, and resources for large-scale instructional changes that will lead to improvement in classroom transactions. The next phase of SSA will focus on these issues. SSA III is expected to be effective in FY14. 3. Assessment of Outcomes 3.1 Relevance of Objectives, Design and Implementation Relevance of Objective The objective is still highly relevant, timely and appropriate to the current needs of the country’s social and economic development. It is also timely and appropriate to the needs of India’s education sector. The objective is consistent with the Country Assistance Strategy (dated) which emphasizes improved delivery of public services as the first of three key pillars. In addition, this financing would contribute to a second pillar of the CPS - achieving rapid, inclusive growth – by reducing the human capital constraints to growth in both rural and urban areas. 11 Further, a major focus of the Twelfth Five Year Plan6 will be on implementing the objectives of the RTE Act and aligning the government policies and practices with the overall goal of providing quality schooling for all children until the age of 14 years. There would be four strategic areas under SSA during the Twelfth Plan. These are: (i) strong focus on learning outcomes; (ii) addressing residual access and equity gaps; (iii) focus on teacher and education leadership; and (iv) linkages with other sectors and programs. Design and implementation: The core design of the project and implementation arrangements remain highly relevant. The project activities have contributed to: increasing the percentage and number of children completing elementary education and continuing on to secondary education. The SSA program has also seen a significantly enhanced focus on quality. The mechanisms for measuring learning outcomes effectively are established, but too recent to measure progress during the project period. The implementation arrangements of SSA II had also turned out to be effective and efficient for achieving the project objective. Rating: Considering these factors, the relevance of objectives, design, and implementation is rated High. 3.2 Achievement of Project Development Objectives The SSA II project supported the GoI’s SSA program in partnership with GoI, DFID and the EU. The project provided the DPs with a strong platform to coordinate and link their support to a Government program under a common results framework. The Project’s PDO was to enhance access and make it more equitable, measure learning levels and make progress towards improvements in quality. This has been broken down into four major PDO areas. At project completion, significant progress has been made towards achievement of the access and equity objectives and measurement of student learning levels. However, while many inputs for improved quality have been provided, there is no evidence yet of improvements in learning outcomes. The details of the project’s major outcomes and achievements are as follows: PDO I. Universal access and reduction in out of school children (OOSC): Indicators: (i) Reduction in the number of out-of-school children aged 6-14 years; and (ii) Enrollment in elementary school increases in absolute terms. Measuring the number of out of school children is challenging, so three different sources of measurement have been used and triangulated. All sources indicate that the target is met. First, MHRD estimates OOSC on a yearly basis through conducting a detailed household child census. As per this data, at present (in 2012-13 academic year) the OOSC among 6-14 years old are only around 3 million, well below the target of 5.1 million. Second, MHRD commissions third party/independent household surveys every few years to measure the number of OOSC. The first such survey (2005) estimated that the number of OOSC was around 13.4 million. In 2009, the second independent survey indicated that the number of OOSC had reduced further to 8.1 million. The third independent household survey (2012-13) is still underway. It is worth noting 6 Twelfth Five Year Plan- (2012–2017) Social Sectors, Volume III (Planning Commission, Govt. of India) 12 that the data from the first two independent surveys has closely matched the data from MHRD census estimates, which leads us to believe that the third survey will confirm that the number of OOSC will be well below the target of 5.1 million. A third approach is an analysis of the independent National Sample Survey (NSS) data, carried out by the National Sample Survey Organization (NSSO). While data from the latest NSS round (2011/12) are not available, the number of OOSC fell by 2.37 million annually between 2007/8 and 2009/10, and given past trends would indicate that the OOSC would fall to around four million by 2011/12 – again exceeding project targets.7 Another approach is triangulating the trends using other independent surveys available. As per ASER (Pratham) surveys, around 4.3% of rural 6-14 years in India were out of school in 2008 while in 2012, this proportion has come down to 3.5%. All three approaches also show that a large number of the remaining OOSC are concentrated in a few (mainly lagging) states and districts. Despite impressive progress in Bihar, UP and West Bengal towards reducing the number of OOSC, these three states still account for more than 40% of OOSC in India. Together with Orissa and AP, they account for 57% of OOSC. The number of children in school has also increased significantly – again exceeding project targets. The DISE statistics indicates that the number of students in primary and upper primary schools benefiting from SSA interventions in government and aided schools has increased from 185 million in 2007-08 to around 199 million by 2012. Overall, enrolment in primary schools (including private unaided schools) has increased by three million while that in upper primary schools has increased by 11.2 million to 137.1 million and 62.1 million respectively over the project period – which implies strong growth in both public and private school enrolment. This has resulted in impressive gains in school attendance rates – especially during the SSA program period (see figure below). Figure 1: Trends in School Enrolment Rates among 6-10 years and 11-13 years children 95% 90% 85% 6-10 yrs 11-13 yrs 80% All 75% 70% 1994 2000 2005 2010 7 A word of caution - international experience shows that it gets more difficult to reach the most disadvantaged OOSC. Hence the latest MHRD third party surveys and the NSS data may show a higher number of OOSC than predicted. However, it does seem highly likely that the target will have been met. 13 The improvements in school enrolment/ participation are made possible because of the opening of large number of schools at primary level and upper primary levels as well as improvements in school facilities that enabled better participation and regular attendance. SSA II opened 161,600 new primary schools (including those Education Guarantee Schools which were upgraded to meet RTE norms) and 97,300 upper primary schools (including upgrading of primary schools). A total of 650,442 class rooms were added. Overall, performance on this PDO is deemed satisfactory. PDO II: To narrow existing gender and social gaps. Indicators: (i) Girls as a share of students enrolled in primary and upper primary education reflect their shares in population; (ii) Children of Scheduled Castes (SC) as a share of students enrolled in primary and upper primary education reflect their shares in population; (iii) Children of Scheduled Tribes (ST) as a share of students enrolled in primary and upper primary education reflect their share in the population; and (iv) Children with Special Needs (CWSN) identified and enrolled increases. Girls, and ST and SC children are now enrolled at or beyond their shares in the population. The official data from District Information System for Education (DISE) shows gender and social parity has been achieved. The share of girls in primary education has risen to 48.35 percent and those in upper primary to 48.63 percent which is slightly higher than their share in primary and upper primary age population (i.e., 47.9% and 47.4% respectively). Similarly the corresponding numbers for SCs are 20.09 percent and 19.14 percent against the shares of 17.6% and 17.10% respectively, while for STs the numbers are 11.4 and 9.86 percent against the shares of 9.34 and 8.56 percent, respectively. These improvements have translated into significantly declining enrolment rate gaps between boys and girls as well as between SCs and STs and others (see graphs below). See graphs below. Figure 2: Trends in School Enrolment rates among Figure 3: Trends in School Enrolment rate among 6- 6-13 years by gender 13 years by social groups 95% 100% 95% 90% 90% 85% 85% 80% 80% Boys 75% SC 75% Girls 70% ST 65% Othrers 70% 60% 65% 55% 50% 60% 1994 2000 2005 2010 1994 2000 2005 2010 14 SSA’s focus on equity has played a major role in these declining gaps. As shown in Annex 2, traditionally disadvantaged groups are much more likely to attend government and aided schools – supported under the SSA program - as opposed to private schools. The SSA program has different strategies to address the different equity issues. The identification of Special Focus Districts (SFD) based on the concentration of SC (61 districts), ST (109 districts) and Muslim minority populations (88 districts) as well as districts with high gender gaps and infrastructure gaps have helped to target resources meant for these groups in a concentrated manner. As a result, the number of districts with high gender gaps has been reduced from 85 in 2006 to 35 in 2011. Special interventions for improving girls’ education such as Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya (Girls’ residential education schools) as well as National Program for the Education of Girls at Elementary Level (NPEGEL) are also targeted towards educationally backward blocks (EBB) identified on the basis of gender gaps in literacy and education levels. Special attention was provided to ensure enrolments of children in urban areas through specific urban plans. In addition, awareness campaigns regarding the benefits of enrolling children in schools are likely to have increased the demand for schooling for girls, SCs and STs, as would have demand-side interventions supported by SSA such as free textbooks for students and other demand-side interventions supported by states. Other complementary programs, such as the mid-day meal scheme are also likely to have contributed to this increase in enrollment. However, challenges still remain – for example, there is uneven access to proper sanitation facilities for girls and a shortage of female teachers – no doubt contributing factors in districts that still have high gender gaps. Similarly, urban-deprived children, often migrants, are especially hard to reach for many reasons including non-availability of land for opening schools; less community involvement; and problems of convergence between different departments which provide services and education providers. These children almost always belong to the poor and marginalized groups. Finally, under SSA II, there was a gradual increase in the identification and enrolment of children with special needs. CWSN identified rose from 2.63 million in 2007-08 to 3.27 million in 2012 (a 24 percent increase). The current enrolment of CWSN is estimated at 2.9 million whereas it was 2.4 million in 2007-08 (a 21 percent increase) – hence coming close to meeting the target. This increase has been made possible due to several factors such as a constant focus at the national level, specific strategies developed at the state level, convergence with organizations and schemes under Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment, and active involvement of NGOs. Given the progress made, performance on this PDO is deemed satisfactory. PDO III: Improvement in retention and transition rates Indicators: (i) Transition rates from primary to upper primary education; and (ii) Retention rates at primary and elementary levels. 15 Transition rates from primary to upper primary increased from 81 percent to 86.6 percent during the project period – against a target of 85 percent. The retention rates at elementary level also improved. In those states where the elementary cycle constitute 8 years, elementary level retention improved from 32 percent at baseline to 55 percent (against the target of 45 percent) while it improved from 45.5 percent to 81 percent (against the target of 70 percent) during the same period in those states where the elementary cycle comprise of 7 years. However, it should be noted that the retention rates at primary level has increased only marginally (from 71 percent at baseline to 74 percent in 2011/12) and is well short of the target of 80 percent. However, the retention problems are much more concentrated in certain pockets /districts. For example, the number of districts where primary retention rates are more than 75 percent has increased from 262 in 2007/08 to 380 (out of around 630 odd districts) in 2011/12. Similarly, the number of districts where primary to upper primary transition rates are above 85 percent has improved from 251 in 2006 to 442 in 2011/12. Similarly, the average annual drop-out rate (year to year) has reduced from above 10 percent in 2005/06 to 6.5 percent in 2011/12. Performance on this PDO is deemed moderately satisfactory. PDO IV: To enhance the quality of education for all children Indicators: (i) Learning levels adequately and regularly monitored; and (ii) Improvement in learning levels at Grade 3 The SSA program envisages quality in terms of specific components that would ultimately enable better learning, as measured through various ways, but most importantly, evident through national assessments. At the time of the preparation of SSA II, a system to assess the overall student progress towards agreed system learning goals (as envisaged in curriculum) were in place. At the national level, the National Assessment Survey (NAS) tested Language and Maths in grade 3, Language, Maths and EVS in grade 5 and Language, Maths, social science and Science in grade 7/8. The Baseline assessment survey (BAS) conducted through 2003 – 2006 for grades 3, 5 and 7/8 were analyzed and results were presented, and the Mid-term assessment survey (MAS) for these grades had been held. These assessments were given to a representative sample or census of the target grades or age levels. In order for a learning assessment to provide useful information for enhancing student learning in the system, it should possess the following characteristics: (a) Data are analyzed and results are reported to education policymakers and/or the public; (b) Results are reported for at least one of the following student subgroups: gender, urban/rural, geographic region; and (c) The assessment exercise is repeated at least once every 5 years for the same subject area(s) and grade(s)8. The BAS and MAS were designed in the Classical Testing Theory (CTT) mold and lacked many of the analytical characteristics required for informing curriculum and pedagogy. In order to improve the NAS, the DPs supported capacity building of NCERT (through the Technical 8 OPCS, Core Sector Indicators and Definitions for Education sector. 16 Cooperation (TC) Fund) to carry out NAS using the internationally recognized Item Response Theory (IRT). Thus the utility of the learning assessment system is enhanced. The analysis of BAS (Round 1) and MAS (Round II) of the NAS using CTT indicated marginal improvements in results in all subjects in grades 3, 5 and 7/8. Even these marginal improvements in results were important given the significantly increased enrolments, especially the first generation school goers, the increased retention rates, and the movement of children from better off backgrounds to private schools (which the NAS has not covered). Due to the extended period required in building national and states’ capacity for designing and implementing the IRT methods, only grade 5 NAS was carried out before SSA II phase came to a close (though the grade 8 NAS is underway at closing). While grade 5 NAS data and analysis are available, these results are not exactly comparable to the previous rounds of NAS in the same grades due to the significant improvement in techniques used. However, using 20 common items in the new NAS in grade 5 and in the previous rounds, it was possible to make some comparison. As per this, in 24 states, Language and EVS scores improved compared to previous rounds, while in 14 states, Math scores improved. Average scores (using CTT method) for the common items shows improvements in Language from 58 (MAS) to 62 (Third Round) and in Environmental Sciences from 42.8 (MAS) to 47 (Third Round), while in Maths, there is no improvements (NCERT). The NAS also provides information about the areas of weakness in student performance. These item analyses help the areas for improvement – whether it is concepts, mental processes or tasks - and help to inform curriculum, learning enhancement programs (LEP), development of teaching learning materials, teacher training etc. In general, as questions require higher mental processes, the performance of students declines significantly. For example, while overall 76 percent of children can compute remainder after division, only 45 percent can find the difference of two four-digit numbers with simple carry, and only 34 percent can compute the difference between two decimal numbers. There are also significant differences in performance across states. The overall picture emerging is many children have still not acquired basic abilities in reading and arithmetic. The analysis shows that what is happening at present is mostly “rote learning� and not conceptual learning or “learning with understanding�. These findings are confirmed from other independent tests such as Pratham’s yearly conducted ASER surveys in rural areas (every year since 2009) and Education Initiatives’ (EI) country- wide student assessment of Classes 4, 6 and 8 (2009). For example, the latest ASER survey indicates that 53% percent of children in class V cannot read a class II text (ASER 2012); and Education Initiatives (EI) reports that students are able to respond correctly only to straightforward questions that are close to what one would practice from a typical textbook and are not able to apply the knowledge when presented with different situations (Gannicott and Oza, 2013). While NAS development is one step in the direction of identifying areas for system improvement, at the national level, quality improvement exercise started with developing a quality visioning exercise at national and states level. The quality related reforms addressed: (a) Building understanding on core and enabling components. Core components included curriculum, pedagogy, material, classroom organization and practices, and learning assessment. Enabling components include teacher recruitment, deployment, and development, performance 17 assessment, administration, program evaluation, research, and institutional development; and (b) vision-building on the nature of learning activity and shifts desired in classroom processes; unity of thought and shared assumptions and beliefs on children, learning, teachers; the implications for classroom processes, planning, classroom organization and assessment and a vision of child- centered school based on ground realities. Fifteen states revised the curriculum and subsequently school syllabus as per the NCF framework. Twelve states (mainly small states/UTs) either follow NCERT text books or the text books from the neighboring states while in the remaining states the reforms are still underway. The SSA program supports a comprehensive reform of classroom assessment practice by introducing a system of Comprehensive and Continuous Evaluation (CCE), in place of high-stakes examinations at the end of each academic year. While this reform is in line with international good practice, teachers and schools are having considerable difficult in implementing it in practice and significant additional capacity building and support is needed. The availability of teachers improved tremendously during SSA II. Of the 1.27 million teachers appointed during the entire SSA period, 38 percent were appointed during SSA II. Mean Pupil Teacher Ratio (PTR) in government schools now is 30:1 (2011-12, DISE), down from 34:1 in 2007-08 in the context of a large increase in the number of students. However, the mean PTR camouflages wide variations across the country. Around 30% of the schools and more than 150 districts had a PRT above 40:1 in 2007-08. In 2009-10, due to RTE specifications of PTR of 30:1 at primary and 35:1 at upper primary, this indicator was revised to look at the number of districts and schools with PTR above 30:1. As per this in 2011-12, 35 percent of districts (224) and 40 percent of schools had a PTR above 30:1. While progress is being made in measuring quality and putting significantly greater emphasis on quality, the targets have not been fully met. Hence, performance on this PDO is rated as moderately satisfactory. 3.3 Efficiency The cost benefit analysis of SSA II reveals an economic internal rate of return (EIRR) of about 19 percent using a discount rate of 12 percent. At appraisal, the economic analysis of the SSA II for 2007-2010 estimated the EIRR of 16 percent using a discount rate of 12 percent. The costs of the projects were taken to be project costs plus the private costs of households for sending children to primary and upper-primary school. The benefits of the project are estimated to be composed of two streams. The first is the increased number of students who complete primary and upper primary school thus getting higher wages than if they had not completed these levels of schooling. The second stream of benefits is an estimated small increase in wages for all upper primary school graduates due to improved quality of schooling. We also compute the rate of return assuming there is no improvement in quality of learning. Under this assumption, internal rate of return of the project is about 16%. Since the quantitative analysis here is limited to the financial benefits due to higher wages only, this provides a lower limit to the economic benefits of the project. As is widely known, acquiring good quality elementary education also has many positive externalities such as lower fertility rates, improved health seeking behavior etcetera. These cannot be quantified easily. Thus the actual rate of return for the project would be higher than estimated 19 percent. 18 The benefits stream, as explained above, is estimated from the increased wages due to higher number of primary and upper primary school graduates and also from slightly higher wages for the latter due to better quality schooling. The increase in the number of primary and upper primary school graduates was achieved due to the efforts of the program to reach out to all children (including girls and other disadvantaged groups) via community mobilization campaigns, enrolment drives, greater involvement of village education committees, and provision of schools within one kilometer of every habitation. In addition, the SSA program allocated considerable attention and finances on improving the quality and efficiency of elementary education. SSA II also funded various programs aimed at improving quality of education such as the provision of free textbooks and supplementary teaching learning material, provision of regular in–service training to teachers, and special provisions for disabled children. It is assumed that the increase in quality of schooling will marginally improve wages that upper primary graduates can expect in the labor market. 3.4 Justification of Overall Outcome Rating The overall outcome is rated moderately satisfactory. This takes into account the strong progress in meeting (and in some cases exceeding) access and equity targets, as well as those for retention. While the clear emphasis on quality is beginning to have an impact, the targets for both measuring and improving learning outcomes have only been partially met. While this is understandable, given the international evidence which shows that quality improvements take time, it is clear that the program needs to maintain and even increase the focus on quality moving forward. The Table below provides a summary of the scores of different aspects of project outcomes, using a six point scale to serve as a check on the overall assessment of the outcomes rating. This results in an outcome rating of moderately satisfactory. Table 1: Project Outcome Evaluation Scores Weight Score Weighted score Relevance 0.33 Alignment with development strategy 0.07 6 0.42 Objectives 0.08 5 0.40 Design 0.08 5 0.40 Implementation 0.10 4 0.40 Efficacy 0.34 PDO I 0.08 5 0.40 PDO II 0.08 5 0.40 PDO III 0.08 4 0.32 PDO IV 0.10 4 0.40 Efficiency 0.33 Benefits to costs 0.17 5 0.85 Internal efficiency 0.16 5 0.80 Total 1.00 4.79 1 = Highly Unsatisfactory, 2 = Unsatisfactory, 3 = Moderately Unsatisfactory, 4 = Moderately Satisfactory, 5 = Satisfactory, 6 = Highly Satisfactory 19 3.5 Overarching Themes, Other Outcomes and Impacts (a) Poverty Impacts, Gender Aspects, and Social Development Poverty Impacts. SSA interventions disproportionately benefited the poor and marginalized as seen in Section 3.2. The figure below from the 2009/10 NSS data shows that children from underprivileged groups like SC and ST predominantly attend government and aided schools. Similarly girl children attend government schools slightly more than boys; and the poorest children overwhelmingly attend government and aided schools. Figure 4: Proportion of Children in elementary schools attending different types of schools in 2009-2010 100% 90% 80% 70% 60% Unaided 50% Aided 40% Govt 30% 20% 10% 0% ST SC OBC Others Rural Urban Female Male Poorest Richest (b) Institutional Change/Strengthening. The SSA program has had a substantial impact on institutional development:  RTE Act: The most significant outcome in terms of institutional development has been the implementation of the RTE Act and formulation of consequential rules at national and state levels. Though this was not formally part of the project, the project provided the enabling conditions to realize this development.  Planning and Budgeting. The planning and budgeting process embodied in the Annual Worl Plan and Budget (AWPB) has been strengthed and is a fundamental to the dialogue between the center and state governments. It has also evolved to focus more on outcomes and processes.  School Management Committees (SMCs): The project played a huge role in strengthening the capacity, knowledge, effectiveness of SMCs in managing funds and holding schools accountable for children’s education. Further, as project funds were transferred directly to schools in rural areas and managed by school management committees, there was a positive social development impact through empowering the SMC members.  State capacity: As states had to put together teams of people to prepare annual work plans and budgets, as well as supervise and manage educational districts, and organize teacher 20 training programs, the capacity of staff at the state level in planning and implementation has improved.  Convergence. A major strength of the Inclusive Education (IE) program under SSA has been the convergence it has established with various stakeholders. At the national level, convergence has been established with existing scheme like Assistance to Disabled Persons for purchase/fittings of Aids/Appliances (ADIP), Rehabilitation Council of India, National Institutions and NGOs. The convergence has mainly been established for seeking assistance in assessment, providing aids and appliances and in capacity building.  National Council of Education Research and Training (NCERT): The Quality Monitoring Tools (QMT), introduced by NCERT, have started providing qualitative information on various classroom processes and on classroom assessments of students. Various review meetings of functional area coordinators at the national level provide further feedback on program implementation. In terms of national assessments, NCERT has now developed the capacity to conduct national assessments to international standards. (c) Other Unintended Outcomes and Impacts (positive or negative)  Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA) for the secondary education (Classes 9 and 10), a national centrally sponsored scheme, started in 2009 in response to the increasing demand for secondary education. The Bank and DFID are supporting RMSA.  The program contributed in developing better fiduciary practices, including financial management (FM) processes, manuals on FM and procurement, and training programs. Many of these are being adopted by the RMSA program.  The SSA program has created a huge awareness and interest on the part of civil society and NGOs to look at various aspects of learning and quality of education. The program has also generated substantial international interest in India’s education sector and a large amount of high quality research has been and is being conducted, which informs reforms in the sector. 3.6 Summary of Findings of Beneficiary Survey and/or Stakeholder Workshops N/A 4. Assessment of Risk to Development Outcome Rating: Substantial The Government of India and state Governments are fully committed to continuing the SSA program. In particular, the government’s proposed allocation to SSA program in the 12th Five Year Plan remains high, and the legislative and regulatory framework provided by the RTE Act, and the institutional development mechanisms in place ensure the program’s sustainability beyond the Bank support. However, at the same time, continuation of reforms in particular concerning improvements in the education system governance and strengthen accountability at all levels in order to improve school performance and service delivery are likely to remain challenging in some states with a weak governance environment. Further, there are significant variations in capacities across states - despite progress under SSA, planning and execution capacity remains weak in some lagging states and various administrative levels from the state to the school. Addressing these risks are now the focus of the program moving forward. 21 5. Assessment of Bank and Borrower Performance 5.1 Bank Performance (a) Bank Performance in Ensuring Quality at Entry Rating: Moderately satisfactory. The ICR team deems the quality at entry to be moderately satisfactory. During preparation and appraisal, the Bank in general took into account the adequacy of project design and all major relevant aspects, such as technical, financial, economic, and institutional, including procurement and financial management. In addition, major risk factors and lessons learned from other earlier projects in the education sector were considered and incorporated into the project design. The design also benefited from an extensive Quality Enhancement Review (QER) process as well as a Bank-wide Regional Operations Committee (ROC) review of the project. However, some of the problems experienced during implementation, such as the capacity of lagging states, could perhaps have been anticipated and specific measures proposed. Project preparation was carried out with an adequate number of specialists who provided the technical skill mix necessary to address sector concerns and a good project design. The Bank provided adequate resources in terms of staff weeks and dollar amount to ensure quality preparation and appraisal work. The project was consistent with the CAS and government priorities in the sector at the time. The Bank had a consistently good working relationship with the Borrower during preparation and appraisal which enabled an open dialogue on difficult issues. (b) Quality of Supervision Rating: Satisfactory. The Bank's performance during the implementation of the project was satisfactory. Sufficient budget and staff resources were allocated, and the project was adequately and intensively supervised, and closely monitored. The Bank team also technically supported the TC Fund provided by DFID for capacity building for assessment and evaluation. Aide-Memoires were prepared regularly during the joint review missions and alerted the government and the MHRD to problems with project execution. The Implementation Status and Results Reports (ISRs) realistically rated the performance of the project both in terms of achievement of development objectives and project implementation. A major recurring problem was the area of financial management (see section on implementation agency performance below); these issues got highlighted due to the due diligence by the Bank’s FM staff, flagging these issues repeatedly during the supervision missions. Bank staff continuity was important here. The team responded quickly in preparing the Additional Financing documents on time. The task team carried out a Mid-Term Review in January 2010, and assessed progress to date on all project components, the implementation issues and the actions to be taken to ensure the successful completion of the project. Bank’s procurement and financial management staff worked with the MHRD staff to explain the rules and procedures to be applied during project implementation, with regard to procurement of goods and works, and selection of consultants, accounts and audits, based on the Credit Agreement. 22 (c) Justification of Rating for Overall Bank Performance Rating: Moderately Satisfactory. Based on the Bank performance during lending phase and supervision as discussed above, overall Bank performance is rated as moderately satisfactory. 5.2 Borrower Performance (a) Government Performance Rating: Satisfactory. As mentioned in Section 2.1, the government had shown its commitment to the objectives of the project at the time of project preparation. The government consistently maintained its commitment throughout the implementation. For example, in both FY2008-09 and FY2009-10, both Central and State Government allocations and expenditures for SSA II exceeded expectations set out in the PAD. This acceleration in total SSA II program expenditures led to full disbursement of all IDA resources by September 30, 2009, six months prior to the original closing. Passage of the RTE Act by the Indian Parliament in August 2009 has improved the policy and legal framework for implementation of SSA, as it makes certain elementary education objectives mandatory for the States to achieve. The government officials worked closely with the Bank's project team on a continual basis, and cooperated fully with the task team. Appropriate levels of review and approval were usually in place; financial accountability and follow-up was observed, and expenditures were duly authorized before they were incurred; and documentation was maintained properly for periodic review. The project did not suffer from any counterpart funding problems, as the GoI took timely corrective measures and made appropriate budget provisions. (b) Implementing Agency or Agencies Performance Rating: Moderately Satisfactory. The implementing entities (MHRD and 35 States and Union Territories) were fully committed to this project. For example, MHRD, through the Elementary Education Bureau (EEB), played a key role in directing the planning process and, in strengthening the consultation in the process, and instilling accountability into it. Along with the Project Appraisal Board (PAB), MHRD focused on the lagging states as well as critical technical or implementation bottlenecks in all states. Quarterly reviews were used for resolving issues at the state level; and at the semi-annual meetings with state ministries MHRD reviewed project’s progress and implementation issues were discussed and resolved. MHRD worked with apex national institutions such as NUEPA and NCERT for the development of appropriate monitoring mechanisms for the project. While the focus of the program increasingly shifted to quality during the SSA II project period, there is clearly need for greater focus – and commensurate capacity development - on improvements in learning outcomes and classroom processes moving forward. Financial Management. See Section 2.4 above. 23 Procurement. Total procurement entities within the project numbered at 8350 and at community level 1.3 million schools handled beneficiary led construction of new schools, classrooms, walls etc. valued up to $10,000. Establishment of community level horizontal assurances mechanisms like Social Audit, Display Boards, etc. had added transparency and efficiency in school construction. Across the country, the model of community construction had led to better schools at lower costs. Third party procurement review of all procurement was conducted by the GoI, on a rotational basis to ensure that all states were covered in a three year cycle, through Independent Auditors. SSA had also integrated procurement review as part of Internal Audit and the quarterly Financial managers meeting organized by the national Government took up issues in procurement for action plans and remedies. Education is a joint responsibility of the national and state governments and States have independence and authority over implementation of project activities. As expected in a large, national program covering 35 states and UTs, there was considerable variation in performance across states. Taking this factor into account, the overall performance of the implementing agencies is rated as Moderately Satisfactory. (c) Justification of Rating for Overall Borrower Performance Rating: Moderately Satisfactory. In light of the Government and implementing agencies’ performance as discussed above, the overall performance of the Borrower is rated moderately satisfactory. 6. Lessons Learned Demonstration of Results: Strong political commitment and ownership are critical for successfully steering a centrally sponsored scheme. Significant and positive results – especially on the access and equity agenda - demonstrated by the program has proved to be the lynchpin for sustained political ownership and commitment. Development Partner Coordination: SSA provided DPs with a viable platform to provide consistent and concordant support to the program under a common results framework, jointly designed with the Government. This significantly reduced the transaction costs for the Government. Continuous and intensive DP engagement across the program and technical and advisory support provided resulted in timely identification of issues and (often) resolution of challenges during implementation. Capacity: A realistic assessment of the capacity is important to inform the design and sequencing of the reform programs for optimal impact. Inadequate staffing, especially at the state and local levels, led to challenges in areas such as financial management and adversely affected project implementation. Assessments: Regular diagnostic assessments for tracking student achievement are good initial steps towards improving student learning outcomes. However, to leverage the assessments to achieve intended improvements requires capacity for test design, test administration and analysis, and wide dissemination of the findings to key stakeholders and the public. 24 Monitoring and Evaluation. Availability of timely and reliable data is essential for choosing the results indicators to measure the achievement of the development objectives. In SSA, significant strengthening of the DISE database was critical for assessing program performance and feeding data to policymakers to make requisite modifications to program design. Communications. Communication is key to successful interventions. Communicating "changes", especially those related to the "softer" aspects of education (like quality interventions, intentions and outcomes) is quite challenging, but unless the message is not conveyed properly to various stakeholders, the intended outcomes will be difficult to achieve. For example: Parental understanding of quality and learning is often around the traditional rote learning and "marks" based, and if National curriculum framework envisages child centered pedagogy, or multi-grade multi-level teaching like Activity Based Learning in Tamil Nadu, it is important that parents are informed about through effective communication strategy. 7. Comments on Issues Raised by Borrower/Implementing Agencies/Partners (a) Borrower/implementing agencies To fill up after receiving the Borrower’s comments on the Bank’s ICR. (b) Cofinanciers To fill up after receiving comments from DPs (c) Other partners and stakeholders NA 25 Annex 1. Project Costs and Financing The project’s Sector Wide Approach (SWAp) design differs from a traditional investment lending operation as there was no pre-defined component and associated ex-ante allocation of finance. Outlays of the project were approved based on district level decentralized annual planning. The cost of the program is driven by the interventions needed to achieve universal elementary education of satisfactory quality as determined by decentralized annual planning. The project plans and outlays were mainly based on contextualized interventions that were aimed at improving the four goals of SSA – namely, improve access and enrolments, improve retention and transitions to the next stage of education, improve quality and learning levels and all these to be achieved by bridging gender and social gaps. Interventions could be designed with many of these objectives and not necessarily map neatly into project objectives. At the time of appraisal, it was estimated that the project would require around USD 10,700 million, of which nearly a third was expected to be devoted to civil works. See table below. Table 2: Project Cost by Component (in USD Million equivalent) Exchange rate effective on March 31, Exchange rate Effective March 31, 2008 2012 1 USD= INR 39.25 I USD= INR 51.01 Actual exp Actual exp Actual exp Actual exp (2007/8 to (2007/8 to (2007/8 to (2007/8 to Appraisal 2009/10: 2011/12 – 2009/10: 2011/12 – Estimate Percent Percent in Intervention excl SSA II incl. SSA II excl SSA II incl SSA II (USD in total total AF period) AF period) AF period) AF period) millions) (USD (USD (USD (USD Millions) Millions) Millions) Millions) Civil Works 3531 33% 4175 8961 3212 6895 30% Maintenance 535 5% 449 804 345 618 3% Interventions for OOSC 1144 11% 575 797 442 614 3% Free Textbooks 695 6% 718 1321 553 1017 4% Innovative Activities 364 3% 273 491 210 378 2% Teacher Grants 214 2% 144 243 110 187 1% School Grants 182 2% 387 734 297 564 2% Teaching- Learning Equipment 267 2% 87 116 67 89 0% BRC / CRC 364 3% 440 998 339 768 3% Teacher Training 621 6% 327 588 251 452 2% Salaries 1144 11% 5130 10918 3947 8401 37% Management 642 6% 379 869 292 669 3% Others 996 9% 1129 2939 869 2262 10% Total 10700 100% 14211 29779 10935 22914 100% The analysis of expenditure categories and interventions indicate that in reality, many different interventions were broadly included in the project. For example, interventions regarding Learning Enhancement Programs (LEP), provision of 2 pairs of school uniforms to all children 26 attending government schools, etc. Some interventions also got modified, such as the free text books. At the time of appraisal of SSA II project, free text books were entitlements for only girls, and children from SC and ST communities. In the course of time and post RTE, free text books were introduced as a universal entitlement for all children.   The list of interventions are broad ones, and there are several sub-dimensions to each of these interventions and components – for example, the innovative activity at district level is meant to include several activities using a block grant at district level. These interventions could be broadly categorized as those facilitating better access and retention, those aimed mainly at improving quality, annual grants of various forms, those dealing with school infrastructure, gender and equity and management. Outlays increased every year, and did so in most categories. 27 Annex 2: Output by Components It must be noted at the outset that this project being a SWAp, there were no formal components mapped to each development goals, but interventions which led to one or the other outputs and outcomes. This annex provides additional information to complement the discussion on the achievement of outcomes in Section 3 of the main text. It includes data on: (i) trends in outcomes as reported by administrative monitoring data, as well as additional data from independent sources to triangulate and validate trends; and (ii) trends in outputs to facilitate the establishment of the linkages between the program outputs and achievement of objectives. Table 3: Results Monitoring Framework Original Remarks Actual Value Target Achieved at Baseline Values Formally Revised Indicator Completion Value (from Target Values or Target approval Years documents) PDO Indicators Number of 13.5 million 4.9 million 5.1 million 8.15 million A continuation of the trend from Out of (2005) (2009) 2005 to 2009 would mean the school target would be met, though a children new Independent Household Survey is underway to get the latest figure Around 3 million children were officially identified for interventions for 2012-13. More analysis using the trends available from national household surveys in section below. Increase in Increase in Increase in enrolments 124.4 enrolments enrolments from 137. 1million Net increase of around 12 million in to 2007-08 data of in primary million in primary and 19 primary commensur 134.1 million million at upper primary levels ate with the (baseline reported 62.1 million from baseline data (2005-06); 43.7 million decline in in SSA II AF in upper and more specifically, increase at upper OOSC Results primary by 3 million at primary level and primary Framework) at (DISE 2011- 11 million at upper primary level (DISE primary and 50.7 12) from the year 2007-08. 2005-06) million at upper primary level Number of CWSN Increase/ Increase / maintain CWSN Children identified: maintain enrolment to identified: with 2.53 million enrolment commensurate 3.27 million Increase in the number of CWSN Special Enrolled: to with the CWSN Enrolled: 2.9 identified by 0.74 million and Needs 2.18 million commensur identified. At the million 2011- increase in enrolment by 0.72 (CWSN) (2006-07: ate with the time of SSA II AF, 12: PMIS million during the period. identified PMIS CWSN # Report from and Report from identified CWSN identified IED Unit enrolled in Inclusive were: 2.63 million; 28 Original Remarks Actual Value Target Achieved at Baseline Values Formally Revised Indicator Completion Value (from Target Values or Target approval Years documents) schools / Education & home based for Disabled Enrolled: 2.4 education Unit) million (2007-08: PMIS Report from IED Unit) Enrollment Girls Enrollment Enrollment shares Girls Triangulating the analysis with shares of Share in shares of of girls reflect their trends in gender parity using girls, SCs population: girls reflect share in Share in NSS data also confirms bridging and STs in 47.90% their share population. enrolment: of gender gaps during SSA primary Share in in Primary: period In 2007-08 Primary Upper education is enrolment: population 48.35% Gender (baseline data parity age primary maintained Primary: U. Pry: reported for SSA II (ratio of age or increased 47.79% 48.63% F/M enroll AF RF), the relative to U. Pry: (DISE 2011- rates) enrolment shares their share 45.8% 12) 1999/2000 0.89 0.86 were as follows: 2004/05 0.95 0.91 in (DISE pry:48.2% 2009/10 0.98 0.98 population 2005-06) U.Pry: 46.99% at national (DISE 2007-08) and State levels SC Enrollment Enrollment shares SC Triangulating the analysis with Share in shares of of SC reflect their trends in trends in social parity population: SC reflect share in population Share in for SCs using NSS data also 17.60% their share enrolment: confirms bridging of gender gaps In 2007-08 Share in in Primary: during SSA period (baseline data enrolment: population 20.09% Social Primary Upper reported for SSA II Parity age primary Primary: U. Pry: AF RF), the (ratio: SC age 18.95% 19.14% to Overall enrolment shares U. Pry: (DISE 2011- enroll rate) were as follows: 19.42% 12) 1999/2000 0.939 0.919 SC: 2004/05 0.966 0.957 (DISE pry:19.17% 2009/10 0.980 0.988 2005-06) U.Pry: 20.08% (DISE 2007-08) ST Enrollment Enrollment shares ST Triangulating the analysis with Share in shares of of ST reflect their trends in trends in social parity population: ST reflect share in population Share in for STs using NSS data also 9.34% their share In 2007-08 enrolment: confirms bridging of gender gaps Share in in (baseline data Primary: during SSA period enrolment: population reported for SSA II 11.40% Social Primary Upper Primary: AF RF), the U. Pry: Parity age primary (ratio: ST age 9.56% enrolment shares 9.86% to Overall U. Pry: were as follows: (DISE 2011- enroll rate) 9.28% ST: 12) 1999/2000 0.850 0.826 (DISE Pry: 11.6% 2004/05 0.919 0.899 2009/10 0.958 0.953 2005-06) U.Pry:9.23% (DISE 2007-08) Retention Primary 75% As per SSA II AF 74% Strong over-achievement of rate at 71% baseline figures targets at elementary level 29 Original Remarks Actual Value Target Achieved at Baseline Values Formally Revised Indicator Completion Value (from Target Values or Target approval Years documents) primary & Improve it (2007-08), 54.8% (Grades 1-VII or VIII). Target elementary Elementary: to at least retention rates (DISE 2010- almost met at primary level level 32% (States 40% were primary was 11) implying strong gains in post- increased with 73.1%, hence primary. Elementary target was set at stage I – 80% VIII) Improve it to at least At elementary 80.6% 45.5% 52% level (States with (DISE 2010- (States with Gr 1-VIII baseline 11) Elementary was 38.37% and is Class I- for states with Gr VII) 1-VII cycle, (DISE 56.35%), the 2005-06) targets were revised to 45% and 70% respectively Improveme Results for Results for Baseline learning assessment nts in grades 3,5 only grade 5 results (using round II of Learning and 7/8 available Classical Testing analysis). New levels in available using Item assessments done building grade 3, 5 using Response capacity in NCERT and using and 7/8 classical Theory (IRT) internationally recognized good testing analysis practice IRT methodology. theory New NAS Report with IRT analysis. analysis for Gr V ready for June 2012. Gr VIII test under preparation incorporating lessons from Gr V test. Owing to new and improved methodology put in place – results not comparable with baseline. and new method for Grade 5 using IRT analysis are not comparable. Direct 135 million Core 147.2 million project students indicator students beneficiaries enrolled in added enrolled in Total beneficiary students (those government during government + who studied in government or + aided implementa aided schools government aided private schools tion; no schools) would be a cumulative target Of which figure of students that include all Of which established Female those students who studied in Female for total beneficiaries: SSA schools during 2007-08 to beneficiaries beneficiarie 48.3% (2011- 2011-12. : 47.4% s. 12) 30 Intermediate Actual Remarks Original Results Formally Value Target Values Indicators Baseline Revised Achieved at (from Value Target Completion approval Values or Target documents) Years System for Yes, but using Modern Yes, a The IRT based results for NAS learning Classical system for modern grade 5 shows poor learning assessment at Testing theory learning system for outcomes in most states. A the primary analysis assessment learning comparison with NAS of level such as IRT assessment previous round using CTT established measurement based analysis shows is now in improvements in Language place and the and EVS in 24 states and first testing improvements in Math in 14 using IRT states. was done for The results of independent grade 5 surveys using different during 2010. parameters and methodology confirms poor and rote learning Utility of the 2.00 4.00 4.00 This rating is based on learning OPCS’s core Education sector assessment indicators’ definition. As per system this, if all the three following aspects/ criteria are addressed through NAS, it gets a rating of 4 (out of 4). These are (i) Data are analyzed and results are reported to education policymakers and/or the public; (ii) Results are reported for at least one of the following student subgroups: gender, urban/rural, geographic region; and (iii) The assessment exercise is repeated at least once every 5 years for the same subject area(s) and grade(s) Number of The indicator This indicator was further districts with was revised to revised post RTE. RTE Pupil the # of prescribes a PTR norm of 30:1 Teacher districts with at primary and 35:1 at upper Ratio greater PTR>40. The primary level at the school than 60 baseline data level. shows that in 70 2007-08 (SSA (DISE 2005- 10 districts 104 II AF RF), 06) there were 151 districts with PTR>40 and target was to reduce it to 75. (DISE 2007-08) 31 Intermediate Actual Remarks Original Results Formally Value Target Values Indicators Baseline Revised Achieved at (from Value Target Completion approval Values or Target documents) Years Pupil 41:1 Maintain PTR Primary Primary Average PTRs camouflages Teacher below 40:1 at 34:1 (2007- 30:1 wide variations across districts Ratio 1 both Primary 08) and schools and Upper Upper Upper Primary level Primary Primary 35:1 29:1 States with 4 0 average PTR>40 at Primary States with 4 0 Bihar (63) average D&N PTR>40 at Haveli (43) Upper Jharkhand Primary level (42) UP (44) % of Schools 33% Primary DISE reports statistics based with (30:1) on revised indicator post RTE. PTR>40:1 40.8% Upper Primary (35:1) 31.1%) Number of 795000 (till Cumulative Cumulative Number of teachers recruited additional 2007-08, SSA target (SSA I # of teachers since 2007-08 under SSA qualified I period) & II) till 2011- recruited till (SSA II phase) till 2011-12 are primary 12 was to 2011-12 are 422,000 or around 34% of all teachers recruit 1.9 1.27 million SSA teachers recruited. resulting million It should be noted that there from project teachers was no pre-decided targets for interventions. this since teacher sanctions were made based on year-to- year changes in requirements, based on annual plans. Number of 696214 (till Cumulative Cumulative Of the total number of additional 2007-08, SSA target (SSA I achievement 13,46,656 ACRs built during classrooms I period) & II) till 2011- in ACRs till SSA period, 650,442 were built or 12 was to build 2011-12 are constructed during SSA II rehabilitated 1.8 million 1.34 million period (around 48%of ACRs). at the additional It should be noted that there primary level classrooms was no pre-decided targets for resulting (ACR) this since teacher sanctions from project were made based on year-to- interventions. year changes in requirements, based on annual plans. Number of 15 (DISE 6 states Reduce the States with 2007-08) (DISE 2011- number to 10 PS:UPS 12) states or less >2.5:1 32 Intermediate Actual Remarks Original Results Formally Value Target Values Indicators Baseline Revised Achieved at (from Value Target Completion approval Values or Target documents) Years 86.75% (DISE 95% This indicator was introduced Improvement 2007-08) (DISE 2011- in the Results Framework only in % schools 12) during SSA II AF RF. 90% with drinking However, this indicator has water facility always been tracked during the missions This indicator was introduced Improvement 65% in the Results Framework only in the % of 76% 62.67% (DISE during SSA II AF RF. schools with (DISE 201- 2007-08) However, this indicator has common 12) always been tracked during the toilets missions Primary: Primary: Primary This indicator was introduced Primary: 40% 45% 55% level: 62% in the Results Framework only Improvement Upper Upper during SSA II AF RF. in the % of Primary: All Schools: Upper Primary: However, this indicator has schools with 60% 62% Primary: 82% always been tracked during the separate All Schools: 90% All Schools: missions toilets for 57% (DISE 69% girls 2007-08) (DISE 11- 12) Primary: 70% 85% 74% Source: Average from ASER Upper 2012 report Student primary:75% Attendance at (Independent Primary and study Upper commissioned Primary by MHRD/TSG) 80% 90% 87% Source: Average from ASER Teacher (Independent 2012 report Attendance at Study Primary and commissioned Upper by MHRD/ Primary TSG) 33 B. Outputs by Objectives SSA II was unlike a traditional investment credit with predefined components. The scope of interventions varied across states, districts and sub districts and also from year to year, enabling the interventions and resource requirements to respond to different circumstances to best meet the development objectives. This section presents trends in some of the key outputs/categories of activity. It should, however, be noted that many of the outputs under PDO I and II also contribute to quality (PDOs III and IV) – for example, provision of minimum physical or human resources. PDO I. Universal access and reduction in out of school children (OOSC) and PDO II: To narrow existing gender and social gaps As shown in Section 3.2, SSA II achieved its objectives of reducing the number of OOSC. Some more details are provided here about the estimates from the NSS data, the latest round available being from 2009/10. There has been a significant focus on enhancing access for children attending upper primary grades. Figure 5: Proportion of Children in age group of 6-10 and 11-13yrs not attending school These data, presented in the graph above provides estimations for the proportion of children in the age group of 6-10 years and 11-13 years who were not attending educational institutions at the time of various NSS surveys (1993-94, 1999-2000, 2004-05, 2007-08 and 2009-10). In the graph, the dashed lines show the trends in the decline in the OOSC proportion between mid- 1990s till early 2000s and what would have been the projected reduction in OOSC if those trends had continued. However, the actual decline in the OOSC population for these age groups during SSA period was much steeper, indicating the impact of the SSA program. As the proportion of 34 younger children enrolled increased, to close to 100 percent, it provider hard to reach the remaining few OOSC, hence the decline in OOSC among the younger age group was slower during SSA II. However, for the older age group, the number not enrolled declined faster than the trends during SSA I period, indicating greater impact in SSA II period. These numbers resulted in a strong increase in enrollments. Several factors were responsible for this increase during the SSA II project period: Provisioning of schools. First, there was a significant increase in the provisioning of schools. The project provided 76,850 primary and over 70,050 upper primary schools. When SSA program started, in many remote and small habitations, education was provided initially through Education Guarantee Scheme (EGS) centres, and these EGS centres were gradually upgraded to primary schools. With RTE, it became mandatory that EGS were upgraded to regular schools with all prescribed facilities and teachers. Thus, during SSA II 42,979 EGS centers were upgraded into regular schools (41,105 Primary and 1,874 Upper Primary). Reduction in primary/upper primary ratio. At the beginning of the SSA II period, 15 states had more than 2.5 primary schools for every upper primary school. The target was to reduce this number to 10. Given the strong focus on setting up of upper primary schools during the project period, this target was achieved and now only six states have this ratio above 2.5. Additional Classrooms. A total of 1,346,656 additional classrooms (ACR) were made available in government schools during the SSA decade (of which 696,214 ACRs or around 52% of SSA ACRs were constructed during SSA II period of 2008-2012). While this was below the target of about 1.8 million classrooms – it should be noted that there were no pre-decided targets since these numbers were based on teacher requirements which changed on a year to year basis from state to state, based on the AWPB requirements. As a result of the provision of additional classrooms the Student Classroom Ratio (SCR) reduced from X% to 30:1. Provision of Residential Schools and Hostels in remote Tribal/ forest/ hilly / desert Areas: As per RTE (since 2010), the project started providing residential schools and hostel facilities for children living in hilly terrain, small and sparsely populated areas as well as for children without adult protection who are in need of shelter and care in order to ensure their access to schools. Transport and escort facilities: Post RTE, the project started to provide transport and escort facilities to children living in remote habitations where opening of school was difficult. These facilities were also provided to children of extremely deprived groups. In terms of equity, girls, and ST and SC children, are now enrolled at or beyond their shares in the population. The official data from District Information System for Education (DISE) presented in Section 3.2 is also corroborated by the NSS data as shown in the figures below. 35 Figure 6: Trends in School Enrolment rates among Figure 7: Trends in School Enrolment rates among 6- 6-13 years by gender 13 years by social gaps 95% 100% 95% 90% 90% 85% 85% 80% 80% Boys 75% SC 75% Girls 70% ST 70% 65% Othrers 60% 65% 55% 60% 50% 1994 2000 2005 2010 1994 2000 2005 2010 Figure 8: Trends in School Enrolment rates among Figure 9: Trends in School Enrollment rates among 6- 6-13 years by gender 13 years among richest and poorest households 100% 100% 95% 95% 90% 90% 85% 85% 80% Rural Poorest 80% 75% Richest Urban 75% 70% 70% 65% 60% 65% 55% 60% 1994 2000 2005 2010 50% 1994 2000 2005 2010 The factors mentioned above (increased availability of schools, additional classrooms, residential and transport facilities) have helped in draw the disadvantaged and marginalized into schools. In addition, provision of water and sanitation facilities (especially for girls) has increased the likelihood of them coming to school. Against a target of 90 percent, 95 percent of schools have access to safe drinking water. 76 percent of schools have common toilet facilities as opposed to the target of 65 percent. Finally, the percentage of schools with separate toilets for girls have far exceeded targets – with 62 percent of schools at the primary level and 69 percent of schools overall having these facilities (as opposed to targets of 45 percent and 62 percent respectively). 36 PDO III: Improvement in retention and transition rates; and PDO IV: To enhance the quality of education for all children There has been significant progress on indicators of retention and transition as highlighted in Section 3.2. These trends are also highlighted by the NSS data upto 2009-10. Figure 10: Trends in Primary Completion Rates Figure 11: Trends in Elementary Completion Rates among 13-14 years old among 15-16 year olds 95% 80% 90% 75% 85% 70% 80% All 65% All 75% Boys 60% Boys 70% Girls Girls 55% 65% 50% 60% 45% 55% 1994 2000 2005 2010 40% 1994 2000 2005 2010 Figure 12: Trends in Elementary Completion rates Figure 13: Trends in Elementary Completion rates by by social groups location 90% 90% 85% 80% 80% 75% 70% 70% 60% 65% 60% 50% SC 55% ST 50% 40% Rural Others 45% Urban 30% 40% 1994 2000 2005 2010 1994 2000 2005 2010 Part of the reason for the increase in these rates has been the result of greater availability of infrastructure facilities which have facilitated student transitions from primary to upper primary schools. Some other factors have also come into play: 37 Improved availability of teachers. SSA provided additional teachers to the States so as to maintain the PTR as per RTE Act. By 2012-13 the States had appointed about 1,275,000 (for the entire SSA period) teachers against the sanctioned strength of 1.9 million teachers under SSA (65%). Of this, around 422000 teachers were appointed during SSA II period. It should be noted that the overall target is a shifting one, since it is based on year-to-year requirements of states based on needs identified in the AWPBs. However, the goal of a PTR ratio of 40:1 still eludes States like Bihar (53), UP (50), Jharkhand (45) and West Bengal (45).Having said this states are making significant efforts to meet teacher shortfalls by recruiting more teachers in order to meet the RTE norms. Teacher Training: No. of Teachers covered under 20 Days In-service teachers training since- 2007-08 are as follows (an unknown number of teachers were trained more than once): Table 4: Teachers Trained 2012-13 up to 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 Sept. 2,588,970 3,161,105 3,509,298 3,213,940 3,443,999 1,826,985 Improvements in curriculum, syllabus, textbook and content rich environments. NCERT was for laying down the curriculum and evaluation procedure for elementary education in respect of the central government and UTs without legislature and to develop a framework of national curriculum. The NCF-2005 was notified to develop a new framework. States too have notified Academic Authority which in most cases is SCERT. Assam, Himachal Pradesh, Maharashtra, Sikkim, Tamilnadu, Tripura, Punjab and West Bengal have revised their curriculum and textbooks. The States like Arunachal Pradesh, Andaman & Nikobar Island, Chandigarh, Delhi, Goa, and Haryana (Up. Pr.), Himachal Pradesh (Up. Pry.) Jammu & Kashmir, Jharkhand. Lakshadweep, Rajasthan have adopted the textbooks and curriculum of NCERT. School Libraries. Over 350,000 schools have been supported to establish libraries to promote reading. As per DISE 2011-12, 54 per cent of schools have libraries. Free Textbooks. There has been a significant increase in the number of children who were provided with free textbooks at the beginning of the school year every year during SSA II. It must be noted here that while pre-RTE, free text books were made available through SSA to only girls, and boys from SC and ST communities, whereas post RTE (since 2010), all children attending government schools were provided with text books free of costs. Table 5: Number of Children to Whom Free Textbooks Have Been Delivered State 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 Total 68,816,781 87,663,456 96,429,242 95,581,759 96,356,144 82,789,643 Reporting is partial for 2012-13 Technical Support for Quality. At the national level, NCERT has been assisting the States in setting up core groups for reviewing their syllabi in the light of NCF-2005. Technical Support Group (TSG) has been helping in developing a vision and perspective regarding pedagogy, teacher training, CCE, making lively classroom transactions and use of LEP. The SCERTCs and 38 the SIEs have been providing academic support to the States wherein the textbooks, TLM and training modules are modified to bring in quality. The NCERT led qualitative evaluation of LEP programs in four states showed interesting results. While the ABL program in Tamil Nadu and Multi Lingual Education program in Odisha demonstrated a positive impact on student learning, the quality interventions of Aadhar in Himachal Pradesh and Children’s Learning Acceleration Programme for Sustainability in Andhra Pradesh did not show any significant impact on student learning. In AP, school grading, home-school links and monitoring were not found to contribute significantly to learning achievement or competency attainment of children at the state level and were also not key predictors for most of the districts. Tamil Nadu is using the research findings of its ABL program very constructively and has enriched its Activity Based Learning (ABL) program. However, in terms of learning levels – while there has been a significant amount of investment to improve the provisioning of inputs aimed at enhancing quality (as seen above), as well as on measuring learning levels comparable to international assessments – this is yet to translate into improvements in learning levels, which, based on international evidence, does take time. Some initiatives undertaken under the project are: Technical Cooperation Fund: SSA II included Technical Cooperation Fund (TCF), which was supported by DFID in parallel to SSA. TCF supported and facilitated strengthening capacity of NCERT at the national level, and through it, at the state levels in the specific areas of (i) learning assessments; and (ii) the evaluation of quality initiatives. TCF enabled the use of relevant national and international expertise and best practices in support of building capacities for measuring the quality of education. This had included study tours for NCERT’s assessment and evaluation staff in Europe and the United States, focused training and capacity building for NCERT staff in test item development, sampling frames, use of statistical packages and other assessment tools. In addition, TCF also supported rigorous impact evaluations of four major quality improvement interventions: the Activity-Based Learning program in Tamil Nadu; Multi- Lingual Education Programme for Tribal Children in Orissa; Early Reading Skills Enhancement Program in Himachal Pradesh; and the Children’s Language Improvement Program/Children’s Learning Acceleration Program (CLIP/CLAP) in Andhra Pradesh. 39 Annex 3. Economic and Financial Analysis (including assumptions in the analysis) Rationale for Intervention Investment in elementary education is one of the key solutions to breaking the vicious cycle of poverty in India. It is widely acknowledged in international literature that completing at least primary, if not upper primary levels of education, has a major impact on economic and social development. SSA II was envisaged as the second phase of external support to the Government’s continuing SSA program meeting GoI’s economic development and poverty reduction goals, as well as moving towards the achievement of the MDGs, particularly Universal Primary Education, Gender Equality and Women’s empowerment. The program also strived to facilitate the broadening and deepening of the quality and equity agenda in elementary education in India. Rate of return: Completing primary and elementary education has high private and social rates of return. There is widespread international evidence to support that the private returns are, in fact, higher in developing countries like India than in developed countries. Private returns are high because completing this basic level of education enhances the wage earning capacity of the individual. Improving the quality of education at this level can further enhance wage earning capacity. The SSA program seeks to improve both completion rates and the quality of education. Social rates of return are also high for elementary education as there are significant social benefits to an educated populace. Figure 14: Earnings premium in India, by Levels of education No Education Incomplete Primary Primary Middle Secondary and Above 5.8 5.6 5.58 5.4 5.32 5.30 5.2 5.04 5.0 4.75 4.74 4.89 4.8 4.84 4.6 4.60 4.58 4.71 4.4 4.50 4.50 4.2 4.21 4.24 4.0 1999/00 2004/05 2009/10 Externalities and public good: Investing in elementary education is beneficial because it also has significant externalities. These range from improved health outcomes such as lower infant mortality rates, to lower fertility rates and better health seeking behavior. 40 Poverty alleviation and equity: Since elementary education has high private as well as social rates of return, it also has a long term impact on alleviating poverty. This impact is both direct and indirect. Directly, a better educated workforce earns higher wages. Indirectly, lower fertility rates and better health outcomes improve human development indicators and reduce poverty (when it is defined more broadly than just ‘income poverty’. More educated women also tend to marry later, have fewer but healthier babies, and invest more in education for their children. The SSA II program continued to facilitate ways to enhance equity by targeting investments in deprived groups such as scheduled caste and tribe, girls, and children with disabilities. Cost benefit analysis of SSA The economic analysis at appraisal projected and assessed the costs and benefits stream associated with the project. It also estimated a prospective internal rate of return from and prospective net present value of project benefits. The costs of the projects were taken to be project costs plus the private costs of households for sending children to primary and upper-primary school. The benefits of the project were taken to be: (a) increase in the number of students who complete primary and upper primary school who get higher wages as a result compared to the counterfactual; and (b) increase in wages of upper primary school completers due to and the better quality education they receive due to various program components aimed at improving learning in schools. The SSA program has been focusing on providing universal access to primary and upper primary schools to all eligible children. The program uses innovative methods to reach out to the hardest- to-reach children such as girls, tribal children and minorities. Additionally, the SSA program focuses on improving the quality and efficiency of providing elementary schooling through initiatives such as provision of teaching-learning material, free textbooks, teacher training and attention to children with special needs among others. There has been a continuous improvement in enrolment rates and reduction in repetition and drop-out rates during the project period. It is not, therefore, unreasonable to assume improvement in the quality of education received in elementary schools as a result of SSA. Benefits stream of this analysis captures these improvements in quality of learning at Upper Primary level. The discounted benefit stream over the working life-time of primary and upper primary school completers under the project was then compared with total project costs. Using the cost-benefit framework, an internal rate of return of 19.36 percent was estimated along with the net present value of economic benefits of USD 53.8 billion (using a discount rate of 12 percent). 41 Figure 15: Coefficients of simple Mincerian earnings regression in India, by education level Below Primary Primary Upper Primary Secondary 6.00 Higher Secondary and Above 5.50 5.00 4.50 4.00 1999/00 2004/05 2007/08 2009/10 Cost-Benefit Analysis and Economic Rate of Return at Project Completion The cost-benefit analysis is done for the project period 2007-08 to 2011-2012. The assumptions and data used in the present analysis are the following: a) Population data for the age-group 6-13 years is computed using the 5-yearly age-wise population projections from the Census of India 2001 for the years 2007-08 to 2011-12. Population numbers for in-between years are imputed using simple interpolation. b) Primary and Upper Primary gross enrollment rates for years 2007-08 to 2011-12 are taken from the DISE database. c) Projections are also done for the number of students completing primary and upper primary grades. The proportions of children completing primary (83.8% and 86.7%) and upper primary (67.7% and 75.5%) levels are computed using NSS 2007/08 and NSS 2009/10. Under business as usual (BAU) scenario, completion rates are assumed to increase by 1 percentage point. Completion rates are assumed to have increased by 2 percentage points after 2009-10 as a result of SSA. Additional Primary and Upper Primary completers are computed taking difference in the numbers of completers under SSA scenario and completers under BAU scenario. d) Economic costs for the project which include: (a) project cost from 2007-08 to 2011-12 and (b) private costs for the students. The private costs are estimated with data from the 64th round of the NSS 2007-08. These costs are Rupees 696 per year for primary school students and Rupees 1346 per year for elementary school students in 2007-08 rupees. e) It is assumed that the benefits accrue to completed levels of schooling and not completed years of schooling. f) Data from the 64th and 66th Rounds of the National Sample Survey 2007-08 and 2009-10 have been used to estimate age earnings profile. g) Similar to appraisal, it is assumed that there is an increase of 1% in wages due to improvement in quality for upper-primary school completers. We also present the no-quality improvement scenario for sensitivity analysis of estimates. 42 h) A discount rate of 12 percent has been assumed in the present analysis for estimating the net present value of project benefits. This is the same as the appraisal assumption. i) Employment rates of 80%, 85%, 90% and 95% have been assumed. The appraisal analysis was based on the assumption of Employment rate of 95% and 88%. To assess the robustness of returns, this analysis presents results for 4 different scenarios of employment rates. Figure 16: Earnings profile by age and education levels - Three year moving average smoothened lines - NSS 66th round 2009/10 Illiterate Below Primary Primary Middle Secondary & High Secondary Diploma/Certificate 3500 Tertiary Average earnings (Rs.) per week per person 3000 2500 2000 1500 1000 500 0 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 Age (years) Internal Rate of Return and Net Present Value of Economic Benefits of the Project and Sensitivity Analysis Assuming an employment rate of 85%, a return to quality of 1% and no opportunity costs by way of child labor, the estimate of the internal rate of return is 19.4% and a net present value of net economic benefits to the extent of USD 53.8 billion. Sensitivity Analysis Sensitivity analysis was carried out to determine how sensitive the rate of return of the project to the employment rate of the primary and upper primary graduates (external efficiency). Analysis was done for 4 different scenarios of employment rates: 80 %, 85%, 90%, and 95%. The results of the sensitivity analysis are reported in Table 2 below. The rate of return of the project does not vary widely between four different scenarios for the employment rates of primary and upper primary graduates. EIRR ranges from 18.8 to 20.5 percent for low (80 percent) to high (95 percent) employment rates under the quality premium assumption. If we assume that there is no improvement in quality of learning, EIRR ranges from 15.3 to 16.7 percent for employment rates of 80 and 95 percent, respectively. 43 Table 6: Multi-scenario Rates of Return and Present Value of Net Benefits Multi-Scenario Multi-Scenario Present Value of Net Benefits (USD Rates of Return Millions) Employment Rate 80% 85% 90% 95% 80% 85% 90% 95% With premium for Quality 18.8% 19.4% 20.0% 20.5% 48,502 53,815 59,129 64,442 Improvement No Quality Improvement 15.3% 15.8% 16.3% 16.7% 21,686 25,323 28,960 32,597 The estimate of the IRR of the project at completion is close to that under appraisal under a number of scenarios, and the present value of net benefits from the project are slightly higher. There are a number of differences between assumptions underlying the analyses at completion and appraisal which affect both the costs and the benefits sides. The estimated IRR of 19.4% assuming improvement in quality of learning and 85% employment is likely to be an underestimation of the actual returns of the program for at least two reasons. Firstly, the IRR is an under-estimate because it has not taken into account the increase in wages due to longevity in the school system beyond the elementary stage. It is a robust empirical finding that improvement in quality of education increases average years of schooling for a cohort that experiences good quality schooling; and more years of schooling are rewarded with higher wages in the labor market. Secondly, it has been computed without taking into account social returns due to positive externalities in health, fertility and economic growth. The value of improved education is not limited to labor market outcomes alone. A better educated cohort of children are likely to be healthier themselves and have fewer and healthier children in the future; a more educated labor force is likely to be more skilled and readier to invent, adapt and use new technology establishing the basis for higher and more sustainable economic growth; more wide- spread literacy is also likely to lead to greater social participation and sense of community among the people. Overall, better educated and healthier children become educated, healthy and more productive work-force for the country. 44 Annex 4. Bank Lending and Implementation Support/Supervision Processes Responsibility/ Names Title Unit Specialty Lending Amit Dar Sector Manager SASED Venita Kaul Senior Education Specialist SASED Sam Carlson Lead Education Specialist SASED Shellka Arora Legal Associate SARIM Mam Chand Consultant SARPS Savita Dhingra Program Assistant SASHD Sangeeta Goyal Senior Economist SASED Nalin Jena Senior Education Specialist SASED Tanuj Mathur Sr Financial Management Specia SARFM Bertha M. Mburugu Program Assistant LCSPS Reema Nayar Sector Manager LCSHE Priyanka Pandey Consultant SASED Lant Hayward Pritchett Consultant AFTP2 Deepa Sankar Senior Economist SASED Venkatesh Sundararaman Senior Economist SASED Shanker Lal Senior Procurement Specialist SARPS Sangeeta Goyal Senior Economist SASED Margaret Forster Consultant Supervision/ICR Asha Bhagat Consultant SARFM Margaret M. Clarke Senior Education Specialist HDNED Sam Carlson Lead Education Specialist SASED Shabnam Sinha Senior Education Specialist SASED Deepa Sankar Senior Economist SASED Toby Linden Lead Education Specialist SASED Meera Chatterjee Senior Social Development Specialist SASDS Venita Kaul Consultant EASHD A.K.Kalesh Kumar Senior Procurement Specialist SARPS Tanuj Mathur Sr Financial Management Specialist SARFM Michelle Riboud Consultant IEGPS Sofia Shakil Senior Education Specialist SASED Sangeeta Dey Education Specialist SASED Karthika R. Nair Senior Program Assistant SASHD Yongmei Zhou Manager OPSFC Savita Dhingra Senior Program Assistant SASHD Sofia Shakil Senior Education Specialist SASED James Stevens Senior Operations Officer EASED Priya Goel Sr Financial Management Specialist SARFM 45 (b) Staff Time and Cost Staff Time and Cost (Bank Budget Only) Stage of Project Cycle USD Thousands (including travel No. of staff weeks and consultant costs) Lending FY07 122.63 FY08 340.79 Total: 463.42 Supervision/ICR FY09 24.72 112.44 FY10 44.02 196.72 FY11 46.95 166.29 FY12 72.72 226.42 FY13 52.77 150.73 Total Total: 241.18 1779.44 46 Annex 5. Beneficiary Survey Results (if any) N/A 47 Annex 6. Stakeholder Workshop Report and Results (if any) N/A 48 Annex 7. Summary of Borrower's ICR and/or Comments on Draft ICR 1. Background & Introduction India is a big country (area 3.3 million Sq. Km, seventh largest in the world) comprising 35 States and Union Territories with diverse socio-cultural histories, spread over widely varying geographical conditions. According to the provisional results of Census of India 2011, India’s population increased from 1.028 billion in 2001 to 1.21 billion in 2011. Commitment to providing basic education for all is a goal enshrined in the Indian Constitution, which guarantees universal compulsory education as a fundamental right for every child in the age group 6-14. Successive development policies and plans have pursued this goal for the last six decades. As a result, impressive progress has been registered in education in general and elementary education in particular. Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) is one of the largest programmes in the world which was launched in the year 2001-02 as a flagship program of the Government of India (GoI) to provide a comprehensive policy and budgetary framework to achieve this goal of universalization of elementary education. The goals of SSA, which are consistent with the MDGs, the NPE and the fundamental right to free and compulsory education were the following: (a) All children in schools; (b) Bridge all gender and social category gaps at primary and upper primary; (c) Universal retention; and (d) Focus on elementary education of satisfactory quality with emphasis on education for life. SSA builds on the experiences of a series of past interventions at the national and state levels such as Operation Blackboard, District Primary Education Program (DPEP), Mahila Samakhya, Lok Jumbish, Bihar Education Project and Uttar Pradesh Basic Education Project. The broad strategies central to SSA design are: (a) Decentralized planning and implementation; (b) Emphasis on special focus groups; (c) Community ownership; (d) Thrust on quality; (e) Institutional reforms; and (f) Sustainable financing. A number of other centrally sponsored schemes (CSS) viz., the National Program of Education of Girls at Elementary Level (NPEGEL), the Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya (KGBV), the Mid-Day Meal Scheme, the Teacher Education Project and the Mahila Samakhya are either incorporated with or linked to complement SSA. With the Right to Education (RTE) Act coming into effect from April, 2010, SSA has been designated the primary vehicle for implementing the Act. Background of the external support projects in SSA SSA I: The Development Partners (DP) i.e. the World Bank, the Department of International Development (DFID) of the United Kingdom and the European Commission (now the European Union, EU) joined the programme in 2004 with partial funding. The DPs pooled approximately US$ 1 billion (The share of the World Bank during SSA-I was for USD 500 million) and committed their support to the SSA for a four year period (2004-2007), through an Elementary Education Project (called, SSA I). This was a Sector Investment Credit (SIC) for which the DP pooled funds with the GoI through a Sector-wide Approach (SWAP). The partial funding of SSA by DPs was aligned to the SSA’s long term goals of universal elementary education and programmatic goals. Due to accelerated disbursement and implementation, the credit closed nine 49 months in advance and the first phase of external support ended in 2007. SSA II: DPs were requested for a second phase of external support to the program. This phase (called, SSA, II, approved in May, 2008) was initially for three years (FY 2007/08-2009/10), including retroactive financing. This term was later extended to 2012 through the Additional Financing Agreement in 2010. The Second credit for SSA II by the Bank was of USD 600 million. The focus of this phase was strengthening government capacity for continuous review, monitoring and evaluation, enhancing emphasis on areas such as student assessment, monitoring and evaluation, and fiduciary safeguards; and fostering cross-State and cross-District learning. The key performance indicators (KPI) identified for SSA II are as follows:  Reduction in the number of out of school children from 13.4 million to 4.9 million.  Enrolment shares of girls, SCs, and STs, in primary and upper primary maintained or increased relative to their share in the population at the national and state level.  Attendance rates of students at primary and upper primary level increases from 70% and 75% respectively to 85% and 90%.  Increase in retention rate at primary level from 70% to 75%.  Transition rate from primary to upper primary increases from 83% to 89%.  Learning level adequately and regularly monitored.  Improvement in learning level at Grade 3. These indicators have been included as outcome indicators in Results Monitoring in the Project Approval Document (PAD). Every JRM Aide-Memoire includes Result Monitoring as a part of review exercise. Government of India shares the progress against these indicators with the Joint Review Missions based on the annual plans prepared by the states and assessed during the appraisal. The term of SSA II ended on 30/09/2012 which resulted in the process of the Implementation Completion Review Report (ICRR). The present report is the ICRR by Government of India which is the borrower in this Project. The report takes stock of the investment in the project, accounts the interventions to implement the project and assesses progress on KPIs. Major developments during SSA II Implementation of SSA II witnessed several landmark developments. SSA II effectively began with the inception of the Eleventh Five Year Plan in fact, taking into account the extended duration of the project, SSA II becomes almost co-terminus with the Eleventh Plan. The National Curriculum Framework, NCF (prepared, 2005) which was rolled out in 2007 provided an impetus to improvement of quality with equity in general and curricular reforms in particular. The focus of the Eleventh Plan and the approach of NCF greatly influenced SSA in bringing to centre stage the goal of quality education. The biggest and by far the most historic development during SSA II were the enactment and implementation of the RTE Act making free and compulsory education a fundamental and justiciable right. 50 The RTE Act (2009): The Act came into force on April 1 2010. Subsequently the national and state governments formulated consequential rules (e.g. the Model Rules, The Central Rules and the State Rules). SSA was designated as the primary though not the exclusive vehicle for implementing the Act and the Government approved Rs. 2.31 lakh crore for SSA to implement RTE for five years. The rights perspective as well as the stipulations of the Act necessitated major changes in SSA Norms and approach which were effected to align the programme with the approach and standards of the Act. Subsequently the Framework of Implementation of SSA was rewritten. The revised approach brought to greater focus on child entitlements, equitable quality of education and continuous and comprehensive evaluation (CCE) etc. It also specified timelines to many of these provisions e.g. neighbourhood school, teachers according to the PTR standards and school infrastructure within 3 years and professionally qualified teachers within five years of the commencement of the Act. 2. Component wise interventions and outcome I Universal access & reduction in out of school children (OOSC) The first goal set for SSA- II was to improve enrolment in schools and reduce the number of out of school children. Universal provision of schooling facility is prerequisite for universal enrolment. In SSA-I there was a significant provisioning of primary schooling facilities across the country resulting in improved enrolment and reduced number of out of school children. In the next phase i.e SSA- II continued this provisioning primary schools and related facilities in residual unserved habitations especially in remote and socially disadvantaged areas. The second significant action was expansion of upper primary schools in all unserved habitations. Expansion of Schooling facilities during SSA-II The foremost challenge during SSA-II was, provisioning of residual requirement for primary schools in all habitations, within a walk able distance and saturation of schooling facilities at upper primary level. The trend of sanctioning of schools shows that there has been a remarkable expansion of schooling facilities across the country during this period. SSA has provided over 77 thousand primary and over 70 thousand upper primary schools during this period (upto 31.03. 2012). Following is the status of schools sanctioned to the states during SSA II. Provisioning of Schools during 2007-08 to 2012-13 S. No. Year Primary Upper Primary 1 2007-08 16757 24105 2 2008-09 9858 19934 3 2009-10 9404 12145 4 2010-11 25381 9410 (incl. Supplementary approvals) 5 2011-12 14481 2843 6 2012-13 1041 1613 Total 76850 70050 51 This includes upgradation of 42,979 EGS centers into regular schools (41,105 Primary and 1874 Upper Primary). These schools have been largely sanctioned to states with infrastructure gap such as Uttar Pradesh (28,619), West Bengal (24,178), Bihar (17,914), Rajasthan (13,472), Jammu & Kashmir (11,137) and Odisha (8,075). Provision of Residential Schools and Hostels in remote Tribal/forest/hilly/desert Areas:- Realizing that there are many areas which are sparsely populated with low density of population (mostly tribal areas) and many children in urban areas who are in need of care and protection, SSA has successfully attempted to address context specific issues of states with regard to access. The detail of Residential facilities sanctioned under SSA during this period is given below: Year Resi. School Capacity Hostel Capacity 2007-08 17 1700 0 0 2008-09 29 2900 60 4000 2009-10 4 400 1 100 2010-11 105 33450 6 600 2011-12 3 1100 10 1000 2012-13 18 1750 70 6150 Total 176 41300 147 11800 Transport and escort facilities: In addition to regular schools, access to school was also supported through transport and escort facilities. This facility was provided to children living in accessless habitation where opening of school was not possible, but these habitation are connected to schools through all weather roads, children of urban areas where highways or railway lines were hindrances for access to school. Year Children Fund allotted in lakhs 2010-11 521010 1672.94 2011-12 184058 4510.705 2012-13 122779 3435.06 SSA has, thus, brought elementary education to the doorstep of millions of children and enrolled them in schools including first generation school goers through successive and context specific initiatives in hitherto unserved and underserved habitations. Implementation of Right to Education Act 2009 and Consequent Shift in Approach Provisions made during this period have been discussed above. Following are other rights based provisions initiated with enactment of RTE Act for Universal Access and Participation. Removal of Financial Barriers: The RTE Act provides that no child in a neighborhood school, as notified by the State Government, shall be liable to pay any kind of fee, charge or expense that may prevent her/him from enrolling, participating and completing elementary education. Expenses such as textbooks, uniforms and transportation are provided under SSA, unless these are already being provided under any other scheme of the State Govt. Free noon meals is also 52 provided under the MDM Scheme. Other schemes of the State Governments and local authorities, such as scholarships, school bags, stationary, bus passes, etc., also contribute to meeting the ‘hidden’ costs of education. Removal of Procedural Barriers: The RTE Act provides for removal of procedural barriers to school access. It ensures that no child shall be denied admission in a school for want of a Birth or Transfer Certificate. The Central RTE Rules provide that wherever a Birth Certificate under the Births, Deaths and Marriages Certification Act, 1886 is not available, an anganwadi record or an ANM record or a declaration of the age of the child by the parent or guardian would be deemed to be proof of age. Similarly, State RTE Rules may notify the documents that may suffice in the absence of a Birth Certificate. Delay in issue of Transfer Certificate shall not be a ground for denial of admission to a child in the new school. Any-time admission in school: Admission of a child in school is a fundamental right and it cannot be denied at any point of time. Ideally, all children should be enrolled in school at the beginning of the academic session. However, in the case of children in difficult circumstances, including children affected by migration, displacement or ill health, etc. schools need to be flexible to allow admission at any time during the session. Special Training for out-of-school children: The RTE Act makes specific provision for Special Training for age-appropriate admission for out-of-school children. SSA has provided support for Special Training for out-of school children who have been admitted to regular schools to ensure that they are integrated into the school system. Such support is both in the form of residential and non-residential courses, as needed and other context specific strategies as proposed by states. Reduction in out of school children There has been a remarkable reduction in the number of out of school children across the country. The base line taken during second phase of SSA for estimating reduction of out of schools children was an all India Independent Survey conducted by IMRB in 2005. A similar survey conducted in 2009 shows that SSA interventions have brought down the number of out of school children in the country from 13.46 million to 8.15 million in 2009. The recent All India survey of Out of School Children in the 6-13 age group conducted in 2010 has revealed that there were 8.15 million out of school children in this age group. Thus, there has been a reduction of 5.31 million out of school children over the period of 5 years. The percentage of Out-of-School Children in this age group was 4.28% in 2010 which was 6.94% in the same age group in 2005 which is a reduction of 2.66 percentage points. 2005 2009 Reduction Total No. of % of Total No. of OOSC % of Total No. of OOSC % of OOSC OOSC (6-14 age) OOSC (6-14 age) OOSC (6-14 age) 13.46 million 6.94 8.15 million 4.28 5.31 million 2.66 Source: IMRB report 2005 & 2009 53 The substantial decline in out of school children in different groups can be seen (Table below) Out of School Children (All Categories) 2005 (No. of OoSC) 2010 (No. of OoSC) Decrease Category Decrease in % 6-13 Years 6-13 Years in nos. All 13459734 8150619 5309115 39.44 Total Girls 6687228 4038592 2648636 39.61 SC 3104866 2308837 796029 25.64 ST 1656978 1069300 587678 35.47 Muslim 2253252 1875744 377508 16.75 The number of out of school children reduced further in subsequent years. According to the household survey conducted by states and reported in the annual work plan and budgets, the number of OOSC is estimated at 29.45 lakh (AWP&B, 2012-13). Number of districts with more than 50 thousand OOSC was 36 in 2007-08 is now reduced to 4 districts in 2012. Universal Enrolment The expansion in schooling facilities has greatly contributed to achieve the goal of universal enrolment. This is evident from the fact that enrolment at primary level has increased from 134 million to 137 million. The enrolment is near universal at primary level, NER was 95.92 in 2007-08 has increased to 99.89 in 2010-11. Enrolment at upper primary level has increased by eleven millions during the project period; it has gone up from 50.91 million in 2007-08 to 62 million in 2011-12. The GER at upper primary level have increased by 17 points, it has risen from 69.88 in 2007-08 to 87 in 2011-12; NER at upper primary level has shown a steep rise during this period. The NER at upper primary level which was 52 in 2007-08 has increased to 67 in 2011-12. II Bridging gender and social category gaps Increased enrolment share of girls: Participation of girls and of children from disadvantaged groups has improved. Share of girls in enrolment at primary increased from 48.22 in 2007-08 to 48.35 in 2011-12 whereas in upper primary during the same period it increased from 46.99 to 48.63 (DISE 2011-12). Enrolment Share of different social groups Social Primary Upper Primary Group 2007-08 2011-12 2007-08 2011-12 Girls 48.22 48.35 46.99 48.63 SC 20.08 20.09 19.17 19.14 ST 11.60 11.4 9.23 9.86 This impacted the Gender Parity Index (GPI). At the primary level it improved from 0.93 to 0.94 and for upper primary it increased from 0.89 to 0.95. The annual average growth rate of 54 enrolment for girls is considerably higher as compared to boys. The number of districts with high gender gap in enrolment at primary and upper primary reduced from 65 in 2007 to 35 in 2012. Increased enrolment share of SC & ST children Share of SC children in enrolment at primary level improved from 20.08% in 2007-08 to 20.09% in 2011-12 while at upper primary it marginally reduced from 19.17% to 19.14%. During the same period, enrolment share of ST showed a decline at primary level from 11.60% to 11.14% while it registered significant increase at upper primary from 9.23% to 9.86%. A number of strategies have been adopted to ensure increased enrolment and participation of girls and other disadvantaged social groups, including SC and ST. These include but are not limited to opening of neighborhood schools, relaxation of norms in opening schools, transportation, escort and residential facilities as per need, increasing the number of seats in tribal schools, innovative activities funded from the Innovation Head of SSA, and the schemes like Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya (KGBV), Early Child Care & Education (ECCE) and National Programme of Education for Girls at Elementary Level (NPEGEL) etc. Inclusive Education of children with special needs: The practices and interventions under SSA for Inclusive Education of children with special needs (IE for CWSN) have led to a gradual increase in identification and enrolment of children with special needs (CWSN). From 26.37 lakh CWSN identified in 2007-08, 32.71lakh CWSN have been identified till now. The current enrolment of CWSN stands at 28 lakh as compared to 22 lakh in 2007-08. The number of children with special needs that have been brought into the fold of education (through enrolment in formal schools, school readiness programmes and through home-based education) has increased from 2.41 million in 2007-08 to 3.06 million in 2012-13, an increase by 26.97%. Increase in coverage of CWSN has been approximately 16% more than target. This has been possible due to a constant focus on children with special needs from the National level, specific strategies being formulated at the state level, convergence with organizations and schemes under Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment and with active involvement of a large number of NGOs in this effort. The percentage of children with special needs identified (1.62% of total child population) is however still lower than their share in the population (2.1% as per 2001 Census) and a large proportion (about 34.12% in 2009) of the identified children are still out of school. The RTE Act has been amended to include children with special needs in the meaning of the disadvantaged group. Further, the Act also provides to parents of children with severe and profound disabilities the right to opt for home based education. SSA has adopted a zero exclusion policy, which means that every child with special needs, irrespective of the kind, category and degree of disability, is provided meaningful and quality education. 930 NGOs across 32 States/ UTs are currently working in close partnership with SSA in this area; mainly for awareness generation, capacity building, surgical assistance, medical assessment and resource support. 55 III Universal retention Retention is a product of many factors, including, but not limited to physical facilities or school infrastructure, availability of teachers, professional qualification and in-service/ refresher training of teachers, decentralized management of schools, community awareness and participation, curricular reforms, improved pedagogy, child centered learning and rigorous monitoring of time on task (commonly understood in terms of school attendance) etc. SSA II has hugely invested in all these areas. Most of these areas have been discussed in the section on Quality, an account of school infrastructure development which is a well organised achievement of SSA, besides enhancement in teacher availability and decentralization and curricular reforms have been mentioned below. Infrastructure development: The schedule to the RTE Act lays down the norms and standards for a school building. A school building has to be an all weather building comprising at least one classroom for every teacher and an office-cum-store-cum-head teachers room, barrier free access, toilets, safe and adequate drinking water facility for all children, arrangements for securing the school building boundary wall or green fencing, a kitchen for cooking MDM, a playground, equipment for sports and games, a library and TLM. At the national level, the vision is to develop each school’s built-environment as an ecosystem for learning. The school is envisioned as inclusive and pedagogically rich, , safe and secure from hazards, incorporating elements of green architecture, optimum resource utilization through culturally and environmentally sustainable practices. SSA supports the creation of school infrastructure as per the norms and standards specified in the RTE Act, both through direct programme funding and also in convergence with other relevant schemes of the central and state government. Planning and implementation by the community through SMC in all school infrastructure development activities is mandatory in order to ensure a sense of ownership and a departure from contractor driven approaches. The following table depicts the quantum of school infrastructure sanctioned under SSA since its inception till 2012 with progress therein. Primary School Upper Primary School Additional Classrooms Drinking Water Toilets Target IP comp Target IP comp Target IP comp Target IP comp Target IP comp 194938 17394 161578 109174 7781 97279 1800986 296211 1346656 229281 4203 213617 739363 87877 530212 As evident, 92% of primary & 96% of upper primary school buildings, 91% of additional classrooms, 95% of drinking water and 84% of toilet facilities are either completed or in progress (DISE 2011-12). Enhancement in teacher availability: SSA has sanctioned 22.17 lakh teachers and part time instructors since its inception till 2012; despite delayed recruitment of teachers in many states, the number of teachers increased from 56.35 lakh in 2007-08 to 64.03 lakh in 2010-11 (DISE). Another intervention, to improve teacher availability at school, is rationalized teacher deployment. During SSA II, MHRD has made sustained efforts to impress upon the need to address the issue of uneven distribution of teachers. Karnataka is one of the leading states which have undertaken teacher cadre management reforms. The state has brought in an Act to provide legislative support to the endeavor. TSG has developed software to facilitate rationalized teacher deployment in a transparent manner. 56 Curricular reforms and decentralization: States have undertaken curricular reforms which also included development of new textbooks. Efforts for decentralization and participatory planning and school management have been through forming and strengthening SMC’s (9.86 lakh SMCs have been formed since April 2010, and 21 states/UTs have made progress in formulating SDP). Improved retention and transition rates: According to DISE, the retention rate at primary level increased from 70.26 in 2007-08 to 73.8 in 2011-2. The number of special focus districts with low retention rate (retention rate > 60) reduced from 114 in 2008-09 to 98 in 2012. The annual average dropout rate in primary stage which was reported at 8.02 in 2007-08 reduced to 6.5 in 2011-12. The analysis of dropout data over the years indicates that the dropout rate of girls has been generally lower than that of boys. The Transition Rate from primary to upper primary also improved from 81.13 in 2007-08 to 86.6 in 2011-12. IV Improvement in Quality and learning levels Quality education and improvement in learning levels is one of the key objectives of SSA. the programme. The SSA Framework for implementation (revised, 2008 & 2010) describes the approach to quality, including, content and process to achieve quality, the impediments in achieving quality and the indicators to monitor improvement therein. The developments under SSA II can be broadly categorized under two phases; I) The period, during 2007-2010 was marked by the approach of the 11th Five Year Plan. Quality improvement was a central focus in the Plan. This focus included, various kind of curricular & teaching learning materials, ensuring teachers availabilities, good quality of teachers trainings, strengthening of academic support structures, learning enhancement programme (LEP) to encourage innovation in strategies for improving learning. II) The period post April 2010, with the RTE act coming into effect, the approach to quality and learning achievement witnessed a major shift in accordance with mandate of the Act. This approach has been broadly characterised in the following three categories;  Enhancement in enabling component – through provision of additional teachers and strengthening existing teachers through various kind of training. It also includes providing institutional expertise & strengthening of support structures for school  Enrichment in core component – includes curriculum, syllabus , textbook, learning in age appropriate classes , content rich environment through library and others support materials and selection of appropriate pedagogy  Ensuring Essential components – include various kinds of child entitlements e.g. library, books etc. Major interventions in each of the above categories have been discussed below. Improved availability of teachers In order to have requisite PTR in the schools, a three-pronged strategy has been adopted, it includes, (a) rationalization of the deployment of existing teachers in a transparent manner, (b) 57 filling up of the sanctioned vacant posts under SSA as well as under the State sector and (c) recruitment of additional teachers. Status of sanctioned post, teachers working and teacher vacancies Sanctioned till 2012-13 Vacancies till 2012-13 TOTAL State SSA Total State SSA Total 3163972 1904794 5068766 564452 564463 1128915 MHRD rigorously followed up with the states on the need for expeditious filling up of posts sanctioned under SSA and under State quota. Provisioning of additional teachers as per PTR and new teachers for new schools. SSA provided additional teachers to the States so as to maintain the PTR as per RTE Act and new teachers against opening of new schools. Upto 2007-08, the sanctioned strength of teachers under SSA was 11.12 lakh. Against this sanction, the state had appointed 9.71 lakh teachers (87.33%). By the year, 2012-13 the States had appointed 12.74991 lakh teachers against the sanctioned strength of 22.17343 lakh teachers under SSA (57.5%). The vacancies of teachers remained mainly with respect to State Posts Teacher Recruitment under SSA from 2007-08 to 2012-13 Total No. of Teachers in Total No. of Teachers in 2007-08 2012-13* Total Sanctioned till end of Appointed till Sanctioned Appointed 2007-08 end of 2007-08 till 2012-13 30.06.2012 1112824 971838 2217343 1274991 *including part time instructors Effective utilization of Teachers and students time in School According to DISE, the average number of days (nationally) on which the school functioned was 211 days for primary and upper primary combined. This increased to 224 days for primary and 225 for upper primary in 2011-12. TSG conducted a research study on teachers and students attendance (data collected, 2006-07 & published, 2009) wherein it was found that average attendance rate of students was 68.5% and 75.7% at primary and upper primary levels respectively. The average attendance rate of teachers was 81.7% and 80.5% respectively in PS and UPS. Another study undertaken by TSG regarding utilization of teaches time in school ( 2008) shows that more than 90% of teacher time goes into curricular activities ( 87.9% time) and training (2.3% days) while 5.9% time/days was spent on other duties, including, administrative and non- academic (1.5% days). The Act prohibits teacher deployment for administrative work except for select functions like decadal census, election and relief work in case of calamities. To facilitate this manadate, SSA 58 provides additional support at each block to reduce teacher’s non-teaching assignments- including one MIS person at each block and one accounts person for each 50 schools. The RTE Act specifies minimum number of working hours per week for the teacher as 45 hours. This would include inter alia time spent in planning and preparing for the lessons, identifying specific activities for specific competencies, developing appropriate teaching learning material, making an assessment of the work done by children keeping in mind the principles of CCE and keeping a record of each child’s progress based on such assessment. Effort to improve - Curriculum, syllabus, textbook and content rich environments - For this purpose the NCERT was notified as the academic authority. The NCF-2005 has been notified as the national curriculum framework till such time as the central government decides to develop a new framework. States too have notified Academic Authority which in most cases is SCERT. Assam, Himachal Pradesh, Maharashtra, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Tripura, Punjab and West Bengal have revised their curriculum and textbooks. The States like Arunachal Pradesh, Andaman & Nicobar Island, Chandigarh, Delhi, Goa, and Haryana (Up. Pr.), Himachal Pradesh (Up. Pry.) Jammu & Kashmir, Jharkhand. Lakshadweep, Rajasthan have adopted the textbooks and curriculum of NCERT. Content Rich Environments & Child Centered pedagogy through LEP - SSA advocates a shift from a teacher-centered classroom to an active classroom that promotes maximum opportunity time for active student participation and learning. Upto 2% of the total SSA outlay for a district can be used for district/state specific LEP from 2008-09 onwards. These include programmes for strengthening reading and mathematics in the early primary grades, or for strengthening Science and Maths at the upper primary level, etc. School Library-Over 3.5 lakh schools have been supported to establish libraries to promote reading. Free Textbook – Coverage of free textbook distribution was enhanced to general boys. Efforts were made for ensuring that the textbooks reached students in time. Fund allocation for textbook distribution increased from 76878.92 lakh in 2007-08 to 165135.80 lakh in 2012-13. Coverage of Children receiving free Text Book Distribution from 2007-08 to 2012-13: - (No. of children) State 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 Total 68816781 87663456 96429242 95581759 96356144 82789643 Teachers Trainings – Improved pedagogical approach through continuous capacity building of teachers In order to build capacities of teachers SSA provides support for three kinds of training: i.e. annual in-service training for up to 20 days ii) induction training of 30 days for new recruits, and, iii) training for professionally untrained teachers. Apart from these, SSA also provides support for 10 days training of head teachers as well as training of masters trainers. 59 No. of Teachers covered under 20 Days In-service teachers training since-2007-08 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 up to Sept. 2588970 3161105 3509298 3213940 3443999 1826985 Increase in Financial allocation for different kind of training under SSA (Rs. In lakh) In-service/20 Days TT Induction/30 Days TT Trg. of Untrained/ 60 Days TT 2007-08 2012-13 2007-08 2012-13 2007-08 2012-13 44225.70 99778.29 6443.78 9842.70 8492.33 15656.22 Teachers are provided various training packages developed by different academic bodies. Strengthening academic support structures i.e. BRC/CRC - The Block Resource Centers (BRCs) and Cluster Resource Centers (CRCs) have been established across the country to enhance teachers’ performance by extending professional support. Progress in Operationalization of BRC & CRC is indicated below. Operationalization of BRC and CRC BRC CRC 2008-09 2011-12 2008-09 2011-12 Tar. Achiev. Tar. Achiev. Tar. Achiev. Tar. Achiev. 6491 6472 6702 6676 72022 69268 76501 74524 Technical Support for Quality At the national level, NCERT has been assisting the States in setting up core groups for reviewing their syllabi in the light of NCF-2005. The SCERTCs and the SIEs have been there to provide academic support to the States wherein the textbooks, TLM and training modules are modified to bring in quality. Twenty Eight states have declared SCERT/ SIE as academic authority of their respective States. I. Achievements Survey – two rounds of achievements survey shows that there has been significant progress in term of Scholastic achievements of children. On comparing round I and II of achievement surveys (conducted by NCERT, during 2003-2009) it was found that Average achievement increased in all groups in Maths and languages in case of class III (Table below). Further in case of class V the average achievement increased in all subjects & across all groups, except in language for urban and ST children. Achievement Survey - Round III-: Highlights of the progress on the third round of the survey and the trends are indicated below.  Third round testing based on Item Response Theory: superior methodology for measuring achievement levels. 60  Third round testing initiated : i) Class V achievement test completed : ii) Class VIII – administering of tests in progress. iii) Class III testing in 2012-13. Findings for class V indicated improvement in learning levels, but there are areas of concern, in Language there has been an improvement in learning achievement in 24 States/UTs, in Mathematics, 14 States have improved learning levels, in Environmental Studies, 24 States/UTs have shown an improvement in learning level. II. Implementation of CCE: the RTE Act mandates for CCE wherein autonomy has been given to the teacher to evaluate the child on continuously and comprehensively. Teachers and other education functionaries are being trained in CCE. III. Innovative practices to improve learning: Several States have introduced innovative mechanisms to ensure teaching learning. For example:  Andhra Pradesh has developed Academic Standards by intertwining teaching and learning for attaining certain levels of learning. For different classroom levels different standards have been developed. These standards are being used for monitoring teachers and their teaching.  Similarly Odisha has introduced assessment of schools against given parameters by the programme named as ‘Samiksha’.  Gujarat has introduced ‘Gunotsva’ as a monitoring tool for learning-based innovations in the classroom processes.  Rajasthan introduced at small sample level (12000 schools) as quality assurance programme ‘Sambalan’ at school level.  The innovations like “Nali Kali’ of Karnataka and ‘Pado Punjab’ of the Punjab have reaped dividends. Such activity based programmes have been very much liked by the children and these have been successful in reducing dropout rate. 3. Reforming decentralized planning and management Decentralized planning and community participation: Decentralization in planning & management is essential to achieving enhanced participation of community. Decentralized school management has been in practice at a large scale since the inception of DPEP through the Village Education Committee (VEC). The SSA envisages a participatory and bottom up approach to planning right from the habitation level. The school management was decentralized by up scaling the VEC experience. The RTE Act, 2009 has mandated formation of School Management Committee (SMC). The Act mandates the participation of community, teachers, parents and PRIs through the SMC in the visioning, planning and running of the school. Local authorities envisaged under the Act, have been mandated to take decisions from opening of school to school timings to academic calendars, ushering in a collegial and collaborative process of school management. 61 School Development Plan (SDP): Since school is the delivery point for RTE and the Act assigns to school a critical role in the community based and community owned planning process, therefore, inclusive school development reforms have become necessary. States now are at various stages with regard to formulation and implementation of SDP. Many states have developed guidelines and formats to operationalize the process of SDP and feed it into the district AWP&B under RTE – SSA. States like Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Karnataka, Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat & Rajasthan etc. have been preparing for a couple of years their AWP&Bs on the basis of SDP. 4. Project financing and financial management Fund allocation and utilization during SSA II Budgetary allocations for elementary education specially the SSA have been going up year on year particularly after introduction of Right of Children to Free & Compulsory Education Act 2009. The allocation in 2007-08 was 2064838.82 lakh which increased to Rs.6993651.87 lakh in 2012-13 (i.e. an increase of over 338%). The central share released by Government of India to State Implementation Societies was raised to Rs. 20820 crores in 2011-12 from Rs. 11119 crores in 2006-07 registering an increase of 87%.Correspondingly. This happened for 2 reasons; i) The annual allocations substantially increased in lieu of the RTE Act, and ii) the sliding scale of centre state fund sharing (which has all along been in favour of states) was reversed in 2010 55- 45 to 65-35 (90 – 10) for the States in the North-eastern Region to reduce the burden on the states. The State Governments also raised the level of their contribution in lieu of the increased outlays to the programme to Rs. 10450 crores in 2011-12 from Rs. 3517 crores in 2006-07. The States increased their share by 97%. The deficit of Rs. 984 crores in release of State share at the end of 2011-12 is offset by an excess release of State share amounting to Rs. 2108 crores during the period. Funding by DPs during SSA II The funding provided by the Development Partners for SSA-II including additional funds is as follows: (i) IDA – US $ 1350 million (SDR 847 million) (ii) DFID - £ 280.46 million (iii) EC – Euro 158.20 million Against this, the disbursement made by Development Partners is as follows: S.No. Year Expenditure IDA DFID EC Total % 1 2008-09 16385.53 1033.17 346.22 195.98 1575.37 9.61 2 2009-10 19471.89 1702.99 372.44 178.25 2253.68 11.57 3 2010-11 26879.80 1141.19 330.55 119.84 1591.58 5.92 4 2011-12 37836.73 2420.65 584.95 0.00 3005.60 7.94 Total 100573.95 6298.00 1634.16 494.07 8426.23 8.38 62 Except in the case of EC, the funds provided by IDA and DFID have been fully utilized before the closing date of the Project. E-Transfer of funds and utilization Government of India is transferring the funds to States through RTGS ensuring prompt availability of funds with the States. State Implementation Societies in turn release funds electronically to the districts and in many cases upto the level of schools. Increased availability of funds with the implementing agencies resulted in enhanced expenditures. The expenditure went upto Rs. 37863 crores in 2011-12 as compared to Rs. 14540 crores in 2006-07. The unspent balance which was 14.57% of the available funds in 2006-07 was reduced to 11% in 2011-12. This indicates significant improvement in implementation of the programme activities. Government of India has started Central Plan Scheme Monitoring System (CPSMS) to track the availability of funds with the implementing agencies. Financial management and procurement SSA has put in place a sound financial management system by rolling out a Manual on Financial Management & Procurement. This Manual provides guidance on financial planning, budgeting, accounting, fund flow arrangements, financial reporting, internal control & internal audit, statutory audit and procedure for procurement. To further improve the effectiveness of monitoring, it has now been decided to review the performance of SSA on monthly basis. Development Partners have not prescribed their own procurement procedures but allowed to follow the procurement procedure prescribed in the Manual. However, financial ceiling for various method of procurement was prescribed by the Development Partners and the States have followed these fiancial ceilings. States are also preparing the Annual Procurement Plan and uploading the same on State SSA’s Website. MHRD is monitoring the progress of preparation of Annual Procurment Plan by the States. In order to monitor the progress of procurement MHRD has developed a software for open tender contracts above Rs. 10 lakh and the same has been hosted on a dedicated Website. A user’s Manual has also been developed by MHRD and the same is also hosted on the Website along with the software. 5. Monitoring mechanism A robust monitoring system for SSA is in place. At the grassroot levels community in general and SMC in particular monitor the implementation. The Cluster Resource Centre Coordinator (CRCC) monitors implementation in all the schools in the clusters through regiular visits to each school individually. The State,district and block level offices monitor implementation at their respective levels through establisehed mechanisms like periodic reviews, field visits, DISE, PMIs etc.Monitoring mechanism at the national is indicated below: (i) Statutory Audit by Chartered Accountants Firms on the empanelled list of Comptroller and Auditor General of India. (ii) Internal Audit by in-house arrangement or by Chartered Accountants. (iii) Concurrent Financial review by IPAI 63 (iv) Audit by State Auditor General (v) Performance Audit by Comptroller and Auditor General of India. (vi) Social Audit of Schools by community members (vii) Social Audit by NCPCR/SCPCR (viii) Quarterly Review Meeting of State level Coordinators. (ix) Periodic review meetings by Secretary/Addle Secretary of the Minstry of HRD (x) Half yearly Joint Review Mission. (xi) Field based monitoring by independent Monitoring Institutions (MI) (xii) Surveys and research studies commissioned by the Ministry (xiii) Concurrent review by officials of the Ministry/ TSG Consultants (xiv) Annual District Information on School Education (DISE) (xv) Annual Appraisal 6. Research and evaluation Research and evalutation serve both the puropse of monitoirng progress on indicators e.g. reduction in out of school children, besides giving insight into qulitaiotive progres towards the intended outcomes. Given below are the details of studies completed recently, the studies that are in progress or nearing completion and the studies that are to be undertaken in 2012-13. Studies completed:  All India Survey of Out of school children of 5 and 6-13 years age.  Study of Deployment and Competence of Para teachers (2008)  Time-on-task study of students (2008)  Study on effectiveness of Block Resource Centres and Cluster Resource Centres in providing academic support and supervision to elementary schools (2008)  All India Sample Survey for estimation of Dropout Rates (2009)  Study of Reasons for large decline in enrolment between class I and class II (2009)  Role of VECs/PTAs/SMDCs/urban local bodies etc. in School Management and Supervision in the context of SSA (2009). Review of research studies completed in 2011-12  Impact of in-service teacher training on classroom transaction.  Study on Teaching of English at Primary level in Government schools.  Study of Inclusion and Exclusion of students in primary and upper primary schools.  Sample survey for estimation of dropout rates in North Eastern States.  Impact of Early learning, socialization and school readiness experiences in pre-school setting of educational and behavioral outcomes along the primary stage -Phase I & Phase II Research studies in progress  Baseline Survey of school scenario in three states in the context of RTE  Follow up survey for assessment of dropout and retention rate at elementary stage in 21 states  Assessment of access to facilities for primary and upper primary education in tribal areas 64  Assessment of access to facilities for primary and upper primary education in Muslim predominant areas.  Development of methodology and tools for study of Classroom processes.  National sample survey for assessment of Teachers’ and Students’ Attendance rates in 2012-13. Studies in pipeline  National Sample Survey to estimate out of school children. It will be similar to the surveys conducted in 2005 and 2009. 7. Lessons learnt Implementation of the project through an autonomous State Implementation Society (SIS) on behalf of the State government has proved a remarkable strategy which has resulted in expeditious implementation, monitoring, follow-up and financial progress. Formulation of annual work plan and budgets and funding based on the district AWP&B has also proved to be a very significant strategy for comprehensive district based planning. Decentralization and delegation in planning, management and monitoring of interventions has emerged as a key learning. That participation of civil society is a crucial factor for stakeholders participation is another important lesson learnt. That quality of education cannot be achieved only by infrastructure and teacher provisioning and curricular reforms are essential towards this objective by far has been the most crucial lesson learnt. The most crucial lesson learnt is that interventions for equity and quality have to run hand in hand and not on after the other. 65 Borrower’s Comments on the Draft ICR: F.No.lS-9/2007-EE-3 Government of India l"finistry of Human Resource Development Department of School Education & Literacy New Delhi, Dated 28.03.2013 To Mr. Toby Linden Lead Education Specialist World Bank 70, Lodhi Estate New Delhi. Sub: Comments on IC R-SSA II This is with reference to your email dated 14.03.2013 wherein draft copy ofiCR- SSA 2013 was shared with the Department. I am instructed to bring the following points to your notice with reference to the draft report. 1. In para F-Results Framework Analysis-(a) PDO indicators - At indicator 7, it is mentioned that improvement in learning levels in grades 3, 5 and 7/8, the target has not been achieved. It is also mentioned in the comments that NAS round 3 for Class V was conducted with IRT analysis, hence the results are not comparable with the base line. Round I and 2 showed improvement in learning levels and in round 3 there were only 10 indicators which were common to the earlier rounds. Though the number of these common indicators is very small, however, it shows moderate improvement in most of the States. Hence, " not achieved" is not be an appropriate response. 2. In para F- Results Framework Analysis-(b) Intermediate Outcome indicators- In Indicator 3, it is mentioned that number of districts with Pupil Teacher Ratio > 40 was 104 on 30'h June, 20 12. The indicator on the original SSA-11 PAD was number of districts with PTR more than 60 and it is indicated that post RTE Act, this has been revised to number of districts with PTR more than 30: I. It may kindly be noted that the RTE Act mandates that PTR should be maintained at school level. Hence associating number of districts with adverse PTR to RTE Act is a fallacious correlation. The target indicator may be kept as originall y decided for number of districts with PTR > 40, since this was the target assigned under SSA-JI. 3. In para F- Results F ramework Analysis - (b) Intermediate Outcome indicators-In Indicator 5, cumulative achievements in ACRs till December, 2012 may be 66 corrected to 1.38 million till 31 51 December, 2012. The achievement figures are collected quarterly only and date 18.01.2012 given in the draft 1CR appears to be incorrect. 4. In para F- Results Framework Analysis - (b) Intermediate Outcome indicators-In Indicator 8, percentage of schools with common toilets as per DISE 2011- 12 may be corrected to read 76%. 5. In para F- Results Framework Analysis - (b) Intermediate Outcome indicators-In Indicator 9, percentage of schools having separate girls toilets as per DISE 20 11-12 may be corrected to read 65%. 6. Para 4-Assessment of Risk to Development Outcome mentions that continuation of reforp1s in education system governance, accountability and service delivery are likely to remain challenging in some States with week governance environment. The remark appears inappropriate as there are elected governance at the State and the Central level, with a well established framework of governance. 7. Annexure-2 - Output by Components- In the Intermediate Results Indicator quotes from ASER 20 12 Report for students attendance at primary and upper primary level as well as teacher attendance at primary and upper primary level. It may be noted that ASER is a habitation based sample surv~ and hence an inappropriate reference for teacher pupil attendance in government schools where SSA is implemented. 8. In Annexure-2-0utput bv Compo nents- B. Outputs by Objectives- It may be noted that 54% of schools have libraries as per DISE 20 11- 12. The World Bank support has been important in the implementation ofSSA during the SSA-11 period. Successive JRMs have contributed to the enhancing the delivery of the programme on the basis of inputs given by the members. (Rajender Prasad) Under Secretary to the Govt. of India Tele: 01 1-2338 1662 67 Annex 8. Comments of Co-financiers and Other Partners/Stakeholders European Union The European Commission engagement, along with the World Bank and the DFID, in elementary education goes back to the start of the District Primary Education Programme (DPEP), the precursor to the ongoing Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) programme. It is heartening to note that international cooperation in the sector has continued on a robust path, currently using a full-fledged Sector Wide Approach to funding. The SSA programme has been consolidating gains and absorbing lessons learnt over time, and is arguably one of the biggest elementary education sector programs in the world. While managing for scale, the programme has also catered to the diversity that India represents – by identifying special target districts with high Scheduled Caste (SC), Scheduled Tribe (ST) and Minorities population, educational blocks with low female literacy or high gender gaps, and children with special needs, for greater attention and focused action. It is noteworthy that SSA has been supported by different successive governments with enthusiasm and there has been a clear upward trend in additional domestic resource mobilization for the sector. India's deep commitment to improve universal access to quality education is reflected in the recent Right to Free and Compulsory Education Act, which came into force 1st April, 2010, making elementary education a fundamental right, and the 11th Plan allocations, have all contributed to putting elementary education in the spotlight – these are opportune times to ensure that India is able to reach the MDGs in education. The SSA programme has the characteristics of a highly aid effective SWAp from the point of view of international support – it is based on a coherent and long term sector policy by the Government of India, it is supported largely by domestic resources and coalesces allocations from the Centre and States to reach the stated goals and objectives, has clear-cut monitorable indicators and is supported by harmonized donor contributions that reinforce the country's own systems and procedures for planning, implementation and monitoring. It can be said that the SSA programme resonates very well the key principles and objectives of the European Union's Development Policy which are articulated in the European Consensus for Development:  There is exemplary ownership by the GoI in designing and implementing development strategies and programmes for improving elementary education: the strength of leadership provided by the GoI and the State governments is a key factor in bringing about such robust international cooperation.  There are well structured platforms for dialogue both within the country between different stakeholders as well as between the Indian counterparts and representatives of the international Development Partners in support of program implementation and monitoring.  The programme includes participation of civil society in designing specific interventions, particularly addressing the needs of the most vulnerable groups of population. Civil society groups have played an active role in collaborating with the government, have helped to build capacities in the sector and have conveyed the voices and aspirations of the hardest to reach children The programme has actively promoted gender equality in education through all its interventions. Efforts to promote the participation of girls in schooling and the attendant results are particularly 68 noteworthy and the EC would like to commend the efforts of the GOI and the State governments in implementing a range of interventions for girls. The programme has facilitated mainstreaming gender equality in education policies and supported financing measures that directly influence girls' participation in education, such as incentives for girls to attend schools, free textbooks and uniforms and improving the school environment through the construction of toilets for girls and so on. These are very much in line with the EU policy on Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment in Development Cooperation. The focus on Inclusive education is also noteworthy and in line with EU Policy. Turning to international participation in SSA, it can be observed that India was implementing the spirit of the precepts of the Paris Declaration and Aid Effectiveness. The EU Code of Conduct on Division of Labor in Development Policy 38 that incorporates the principles of country ownership, alignment, harmonization and management by results entailed in the Paris Declaration and which includes additional objectives and values of the EU on Development are reflected in actual practice. To summarize, it has been a fruitful and exciting journey of international collaboration to support the home-grown program of reform in elementary education. Indeed, there is much to celebrate in terms of success and progress. In the coming period, it would be necessary to provide access to the most difficult target groups; states would need to consider comprehensive strategies for teacher recruitment, teacher development and their career management; a sharper focus at upper primary levels is warranted, as also efforts to bring measurable improvements to quality and strengthen result oriented monitoring. The current times are conducive to support these in terms of policy and resources and to break further ground to improve results and impact. The 12th Plan strategy for Elementary Education is focused on improving learning outcomes at all levels. The 12th Plan targets for Elementary Education are to improve learning outcomes that are measured, monitored and reported independently at all levels of school education with a specific focus on ensuring that all children master basic reading and numeracy skills by class 2 and skills of critical thinking, expression and problem solving by class 5. As we move into the next phase of cooperation in SSA, we hope that there are opportunities to exchange best practices and innovative approaches in education at different levels in the European context with Indian institutions and to share EU-wide experiences in improving school education. 69 Annex 9. List of Supporting Documents  Project Implementation Plan, MHRD, date  Project Appraisal Document for India: Second Elementary Education Project, dated April 15, 2008 (Report No: 41114-IN), World Bank  Aide Memoires, Back-to-Office Reports, and Implementation Status Reports, World Bank (2007-2012)  Project Progress Reports, MHRD, GoI (2007-2012)  Project Paper on a Proposed Additional Financing Credit, dated February 22, 2010 (Report No: 53021-IN), World Bank  Borrower's Evaluation Report dated March 07. 2013. 70