NEP 2020 focuses on skills, but are students really learning? Experts explain
As NEP 2020 places strong emphasis on skill-based education, education leaders at the India Today Education Conclave 2026 evaluate whether classroom learning is improving and producing measurable outcomes.
Even as India has largely addressed the challenge of school access, the crisis of learning remains unresolved. This was the central takeaway from a wide-ranging discussion at the India Today Education Conclave 2026, where education leaders cautioned that high enrolment figures often mask deep and persistent learning deficits, particularly beyond the primary years.
Speaking during the session “From Enrollment to Outcomes: How to Fix India’s Learning Gap”, Wilima Wadhwa, Director of the ASER Centre, and Alka Singh, Head of Partnerships at Educate Girls, offered a ground-level perspective on why many children continue to fall behind despite being in school, and outlined what systemic changes are needed to reverse the trend and improve learning outcomes.
IS LEARNING GUARANTEED ONCE ACCESS IS ACHIEVED?
Opening the conversation, Wilima Wadhwa traced the roots of India's learning crisis back to a long-standing assumption: that schooling automatically leads to learning.
"We began ASER in 2005 when nobody was really talking about learning outcomes," Wadhwa said, recalling how global and national policy debates were then focused almost entirely on enrolment. "Schooling was equated with learning."
ASER's findings disrupted that belief. Even before the Right to Education Act, more than 90% of children were enrolled in school, yet learning levels were alarmingly low.
"For years, about 50 percent of children in Grade 5 could not read a simple Grade 2-level text. That number just wouldn't move," she said.
A TURNING POINT AFTER NEP 2020
According to Wadhwa, a significant shift has finally begun to show in the data. ASER 2024 recorded a sharp improvement in reading levels in Grades 3 and 5, with numeracy outcomes surpassing pre-COVID levels.
"This is the first time the all-India number has moved meaningfully," she said. "For that to happen, almost every state has to improve."
She attributed this change to the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, particularly its focus on foundational literacy and numeracy under the NIPUN Bharat mission.
"For the first time, teachers across the country have a shared systemic goal, not just finishing the syllabus, but ensuring children can actually read and count," Wadhwa explained.
Equally important, she said, was the policy's flexibility. "NEP sets the goal, but it doesn't prescribe one method. What works for Uttar Pradesh won't work for Himachal Pradesh."
IS THERE A SILENT CRISIS IN THE UPPER GRADES?
Despite gains in the early years, Wadhwa cautioned that learning trajectories flatten sharply after primary school.
"Even today, 30 percent of children in Grade 8 cannot read a Grade 2-level text," she said. "That's not surprising, because nobody teaches reading in Grade 8."
Learning deficits, she warned, accumulate when they are not addressed early. "If you don't fix gaps when they occur, they pile up. We need catch-up strategies for older children, too."
COMMUNITY MOBILISATION AND THE GIRLS' EDUCATION CHALLENGE
Bringing a practitioner's perspective, Alka Singh spoke about Educate Girls' work in some of India's most challenging districts, where enrolment does not guarantee attendance or learning.
"Getting a girl back into school is hard. Getting her to stay is even harder," Singh said.
While government efforts and NGOs have succeeded in bringing children back to classrooms, absenteeism remains stubbornly high. "We still see 28–29 percent absenteeism. Every missed day affects learning and increases dropout risk."
Educate Girls' community-based Team Balika model identifies high-risk villages using AI and local data, then trains local youth volunteers to work with families, schools and administrators.
"When a child returns to school, we introduce a 21-day foundational learning programme so she can engage confidently," Singh said.
THE DANGEROUS DROP FROM CLASS 8 TO 9
One of the most worrying fault lines, Singh noted, is the transition from elementary to secondary school.
"The drop from Class 8 to 9 is still very poor in the villages we work in," she said. "National averages can be illusory."
Boys often drop out to earn, while girls leave school due to domestic work, distance, safety concerns or menstrual hygiene issues. For those who cannot return to mainstream schooling, Educate Girls has increasingly turned to open schooling systems.
But Singh flagged a major policy gap. "Open schools are fee-based. Why should the most disadvantaged children pay for education when mainstream schooling is free?"
MORE GIRLS PASSING, YET LEFT BEHIND
Singh also challenged the celebration around improved pass rates for girls.
"India has 13 crore youth not in education, employment or training. Nine crore of them are girls," she said, citing SDG indicators. "If more girls are passing, why are they still not in the workforce?"
Limited mobility, unpaid care work and lack of opportunities continue to push young women out of education and employment, even after schooling.
IS NEP IMPLEMENTATION HINDERED BY MULTIPLE BOTTLENECKS?
On what is holding back NEP implementation, both speakers resisted blaming teachers or infrastructure alone.
"This is not economics, it's political economy," Wadhwa said. "We are large, diverse, and complex."
She argued for smoother learning transitions, suggesting readiness programmes not just for Grade 1, but also at key transition points like Grade 5 to 6.
Singh stressed the need for convergence across departments. "Preschool, skilling, and open schooling all require ministries and systems to work together. That hasn't been easy."
SKILLING MUST BECOME ASPIRATIONAL
Both speakers agreed that vocational education remains undervalued.
"As long as college degrees are aspirational and skills are seen as a fallback, this won't work," Wadhwa said. "Skilling must be for everyone, including elite private schools."
Singh added that innovation-focused initiatives like Atal Tinkering Labs are welcome, but insufficient. "It's too little, too late. And we must ask, are teachers trained to use these platforms meaningfully?"
THE LONG ROAD AHEAD
The session closed with a clear message: India's education challenge has evolved. Enrolment is no longer the main battle. Learning, retention and meaningful transitions are.
As Wadhwa put it, "We are finally moving in the right direction. But fine-tuning, patience and sustained investment are essential."
And as Singh warned, "Let's not celebrate small wins too early. Until learning leads to livelihoods, especially for girls, the gap remains far from closed."
Even as India has largely addressed the challenge of school access, the crisis of learning remains unresolved. This was the central takeaway from a wide-ranging discussion at the India Today Education Conclave 2026, where education leaders cautioned that high enrolment figures often mask deep and persistent learning deficits, particularly beyond the primary years.
Speaking during the session “From Enrollment to Outcomes: How to Fix India’s Learning Gap”, Wilima Wadhwa, Director of the ASER Centre, and Alka Singh, Head of Partnerships at Educate Girls, offered a ground-level perspective on why many children continue to fall behind despite being in school, and outlined what systemic changes are needed to reverse the trend and improve learning outcomes.
IS LEARNING GUARANTEED ONCE ACCESS IS ACHIEVED?
Opening the conversation, Wilima Wadhwa traced the roots of India's learning crisis back to a long-standing assumption: that schooling automatically leads to learning.
"We began ASER in 2005 when nobody was really talking about learning outcomes," Wadhwa said, recalling how global and national policy debates were then focused almost entirely on enrolment. "Schooling was equated with learning."
ASER's findings disrupted that belief. Even before the Right to Education Act, more than 90% of children were enrolled in school, yet learning levels were alarmingly low.
"For years, about 50 percent of children in Grade 5 could not read a simple Grade 2-level text. That number just wouldn't move," she said.
A TURNING POINT AFTER NEP 2020
According to Wadhwa, a significant shift has finally begun to show in the data. ASER 2024 recorded a sharp improvement in reading levels in Grades 3 and 5, with numeracy outcomes surpassing pre-COVID levels.
"This is the first time the all-India number has moved meaningfully," she said. "For that to happen, almost every state has to improve."
She attributed this change to the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, particularly its focus on foundational literacy and numeracy under the NIPUN Bharat mission.
"For the first time, teachers across the country have a shared systemic goal, not just finishing the syllabus, but ensuring children can actually read and count," Wadhwa explained.
Equally important, she said, was the policy's flexibility. "NEP sets the goal, but it doesn't prescribe one method. What works for Uttar Pradesh won't work for Himachal Pradesh."
IS THERE A SILENT CRISIS IN THE UPPER GRADES?
Despite gains in the early years, Wadhwa cautioned that learning trajectories flatten sharply after primary school.
"Even today, 30 percent of children in Grade 8 cannot read a Grade 2-level text," she said. "That's not surprising, because nobody teaches reading in Grade 8."
Learning deficits, she warned, accumulate when they are not addressed early. "If you don't fix gaps when they occur, they pile up. We need catch-up strategies for older children, too."
COMMUNITY MOBILISATION AND THE GIRLS' EDUCATION CHALLENGE
Bringing a practitioner's perspective, Alka Singh spoke about Educate Girls' work in some of India's most challenging districts, where enrolment does not guarantee attendance or learning.
"Getting a girl back into school is hard. Getting her to stay is even harder," Singh said.
While government efforts and NGOs have succeeded in bringing children back to classrooms, absenteeism remains stubbornly high. "We still see 28–29 percent absenteeism. Every missed day affects learning and increases dropout risk."
Educate Girls' community-based Team Balika model identifies high-risk villages using AI and local data, then trains local youth volunteers to work with families, schools and administrators.
"When a child returns to school, we introduce a 21-day foundational learning programme so she can engage confidently," Singh said.
THE DANGEROUS DROP FROM CLASS 8 TO 9
One of the most worrying fault lines, Singh noted, is the transition from elementary to secondary school.
"The drop from Class 8 to 9 is still very poor in the villages we work in," she said. "National averages can be illusory."
Boys often drop out to earn, while girls leave school due to domestic work, distance, safety concerns or menstrual hygiene issues. For those who cannot return to mainstream schooling, Educate Girls has increasingly turned to open schooling systems.
But Singh flagged a major policy gap. "Open schools are fee-based. Why should the most disadvantaged children pay for education when mainstream schooling is free?"
MORE GIRLS PASSING, YET LEFT BEHIND
Singh also challenged the celebration around improved pass rates for girls.
"India has 13 crore youth not in education, employment or training. Nine crore of them are girls," she said, citing SDG indicators. "If more girls are passing, why are they still not in the workforce?"
Limited mobility, unpaid care work and lack of opportunities continue to push young women out of education and employment, even after schooling.
IS NEP IMPLEMENTATION HINDERED BY MULTIPLE BOTTLENECKS?
On what is holding back NEP implementation, both speakers resisted blaming teachers or infrastructure alone.
"This is not economics, it's political economy," Wadhwa said. "We are large, diverse, and complex."
She argued for smoother learning transitions, suggesting readiness programmes not just for Grade 1, but also at key transition points like Grade 5 to 6.
Singh stressed the need for convergence across departments. "Preschool, skilling, and open schooling all require ministries and systems to work together. That hasn't been easy."
SKILLING MUST BECOME ASPIRATIONAL
Both speakers agreed that vocational education remains undervalued.
"As long as college degrees are aspirational and skills are seen as a fallback, this won't work," Wadhwa said. "Skilling must be for everyone, including elite private schools."
Singh added that innovation-focused initiatives like Atal Tinkering Labs are welcome, but insufficient. "It's too little, too late. And we must ask, are teachers trained to use these platforms meaningfully?"
THE LONG ROAD AHEAD
The session closed with a clear message: India's education challenge has evolved. Enrolment is no longer the main battle. Learning, retention and meaningful transitions are.
As Wadhwa put it, "We are finally moving in the right direction. But fine-tuning, patience and sustained investment are essential."
And as Singh warned, "Let's not celebrate small wins too early. Until learning leads to livelihoods, especially for girls, the gap remains far from closed."