FLN crisis: Over 90 per cent of class V students in Hyderabad fail basic skills test

Despite Hyderabad’s rapid economic growth, school learning outcomes remain poor. A midline assessment shows 92 per cent of Class V students lack foundational literacy and numeracy skills, placing the city among the worst-performing districts in Telangana.

Hyderabad: Hyderabad’s IT and pharmacy sector growth and opportunities that offer tell a successful story, but school classrooms in the city tell a different one. Despite completing five years in the school, 92 per cent of the Class V students are still not Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN) competent.

This means students failed to achieve language oral reading fluency, reading comprehension, and writing skills in Telugu/Urdu and English. They also failed to achieve the skill of addition, subtraction, multiplication and division in mathematics.

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At only eight per cent of the Class V students, Hyderabad is among three districts that recorded poor FLN competencies, with Kamareddy and Kumuram Bheem Asifabad districts being other two districts.

These alarming figures have been revealed in the FLN midline assessment that was conducted for the academic year 2025-26 from November 25 to 30, 2025.

As per the FLN midline assessment report, 28 out of 33 districts have less than 15 per cent of Class V students who demonstrated FLN mastery. The remaining five districts have FLN competent students between 15 and 24 per cent.

As for the Class IV, Hyderabad remains at the bottom of the table with only 94 per cent of students failing to meet the FLN competency levels. Overall, 22 districts have less than 10 per cent of Class IV students who are FLN capable. Similarly, 31 districts have less than 10 per cent of Class III students who are FLN competent, with Hyderabad recording just three per cent of such students.

The best performing district – Khammam- has only 10 per cent Class I students who are FLN competent and 25 districts recorded 5 or fewer than 5 per cent students who are FLN capable at the same grade, the report said, adding that 24 districts have less than 10 per cent of Class II students who have mastered the FLN.

As for subject-wise, 30 districts have less than 30 per cent primary school students who got Telugu/Urdu FLN competency. Similarly, 20 districts got less than 25 per cent of students who achieved competency in English. In mathematics, 32 districts recorded less than 30 per cent of primary students who are FLN capable.