How does elementary literacy impact Adivasi livelihoods? SAL 2021 report sheds light
There are different views on how literacy impacts livelihoods. On one hand, there is the opinion that formal school-based literacy using set textbooks is irrelevant to the actual practice of livelihoods.
Some may have a command of literacy skills but may not feel the need to use them for their livelihoods. Even, on occasion, they may see literacy practices as a hindrance to their livelihoods.
On the other hand, a section of scholars and social activists consider literacy a powerful tool to eradicate poverty. If all students in low-income countries left school with elementary reading skills, 171 million people could be lifted out of poverty, according to the UNESCO Global Education Monitoring Report.
The report on the Status of Adivasi Livelihoods 2021 (SAL 2021) published by PRADAN covering Jharkhand and Odisha considered literacy one of the key attributes influencing livelihoods.
In 53 per cent of Adivasi households in Jharkhand and 58.6 per cent in Odisha, the head of the household had no school education, the SAL 2021 data on literacy showed. Data on female members of the Adivasi households also shows that 43.7 per cent in Jharkhand and 50.3 per cent in Odisha had no school education.
A functional literacy test to evaluate the ability to read and write simple texts and do basic arithmetic was conducted with the respondents and their spouses, wherever available, from the sampled households.