Gram Panchayat level maths contest report highlights need for tailored interventions among students

Under the Ganitha Kalika Andolana (GKA) initiative, a maths learning movement supported by the Government of Karnataka, In 2024-25, the Gram Panchayat level Maths Contests were conducted across 28 districts in Karnataka. Around 5,95,517 children from 26,188 schools in 4,890 Gram Panchayats were assessed in about 30 days to address the gaps in numeracy levels of children studying in government schools. 

A Gram Panchayat level maths contest report conducted across 28 districts in Karnataka found girls outperforming boys in ‘higher performance bands’ and noticeable fluctuations in specific competencies between grades.

Akshara Foundation, a Bengaluru-based public charitable trust, released the study on its 25th anniversary.

Under the Ganitha Kalika Andolana (GKA) initiative, a maths learning movement supported by the Government of Karnataka, In 2024-25, the Gram Panchayat level Maths Contests were conducted across 28districts in Karnataka. Around 5,95,517children from 26,188 schools in4,890Gram Panchayats were assessed in about 30 days to address the gaps in numeracy levels of children studying in government schools. 

The study revealed gender-based trends in performance across grades 4, 5, and 6. To understand the performance of students, three performance bands - 0-40%, 40-70% and 70-100% - were created.

In grade 4, 53.1% of participants were girls, slightly outnumbering the 46.9% boys. Girls outperformed boys in the 70%-100% performance band by almost 4 percentage points. Notably, 44% of children in grade 4 could handle division, while 48% managed subtraction. 

In grade 5, 54.1% girls and 45.9% boys participated. Girls performed better in the higher percentage bands, outpacing boys by nearly 2 percentage points in the 70%-100% band. In terms of specific skills, 38% of grade 5 students could handle division (a decline from grade 4), while 52% were proficient in subtraction (an improvement from grade 4).

In garde-6, girls made up 53.2% of participants. In the 70%-100% performance band, girls outperformed boys by 2.5 percentage points. These gender performance trends mirrored those seen in earlier grades.