MP gov school textbook analysis

Overview

Collaborated with students and faculty to conduct an analysis report for Madhya Pradesh Gov school textbooks. The work involved conducting in-person surveys in govt schools across MP and analyzing current textbook designs to identify problem areas.

My role

Analysis, survey, interviews, synthesizing data

Duration

Phase 1 : 1.5 months, Phase 2: 1 month

Tools

Paper & Pencil, Google slides, Google forms

The steps followed in this project were:

Phase 1 : April 2022
1. Analyze current gov school textbooks from Class 1 to 12
2. Visit to printing press to understand the printing process of the textbooks and identity causes for printing issues
3. Questionnaire creation and school survey
4. Synthesizing data

Phase 2 : Oct 2022
1. Comparative book analysis of gov textbooks and private/other school textbooks
2. Questionnaire creation and school survey for comparative analysis
3. Synthesizing data and final insights for report creation

Step 1: Analyze textbooks

Criteria of analysis: Major 3 areas were Type, Layout and Imagery. Other areas were print and paper quality, identifying types of printing errors and overall legibility of content and context. Analyzing the books keeping the stakeholders in mind: students, teachers, teacher coordinator, paren

Book 1 : Supplementary English reader for class 10. These are some of the analyzed pages-

Book 2 : Sanskrit Literature textbook for Class 7. These are some of the analyzed pages-

Step 2: Visit to printing press

Visited a printing press where these textbooks got printed. The task was to make a detailed note of the printing process and ask questions to the workers.

Cause of some printing errors identified based on the printing process:
1. A metal sheet has the content, CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Key) is the sequence if printing, each of the 4 colors are on a separate metal plate. For correct registration of image and text all 4 plates should align correctly, if this doesn't happen the result is blurred or irregular prints/ incorrect colors.

2. After 1 lakh prints the aluminum metal plate is discarded, sometimes this doesn't happen and the plate loses its print quality resulting in hazy prints.

Step 3: Questionnaire creation and school survey

10 gov schools were identified across MP, for survey and data collection. I and a partner visited 2 schools for Phase 1 survey and 2 schools for Phase 2 survey.

Phase 1 survey : this survey was conducted to understand existing scenario of textbooks
Phase 2 survey: after synthesizing phase 1 data, we did a comparative analysis of gov textbooks and private/other school textbooks, and did a survey to understand students' viewpoints while comparing both textbooks.

Creation of final analysis report

A final comprehensive report was created documenting the observation and responses of the students and teachers in the surveys. Questionnaire responses were quantified in the form of graphs and charts to get better understanding of the overall responses.

My experience & learning

I had a wonderful experience being a part of this project, and I feel extremely grateful for the opportunity. Throughout the process, I gained valuable insights and heard fascinating stories from teachers in the villages. I had been eagerly waiting to see a printing press, and thanks to this project, I finally got to visit one. Working in teams and closely with faculty gave me many design insights, and I learned the importance of proper planning and coordination. I also learned how to troubleshoot equipment issues. During our surveys, we used DSLRs and tripods to shoot and record footage. The people of Madhya Pradesh were very welcoming, and even in the schools where we worked, we were treated to daal bati for lunch. Everyone was incredibly generous and eager to help.