EARLY WARNİNG SYSTEMS FOR IDENTİFYİNG AT-RİSK LEARNERS İN INDİA: A QUALİTATİVE STUDY

The issue of studying at risk learners who may fail academically, become disengaged, drop out, or delayed development is of a vital concern in the Indian education system. Even with the enrolment advancement, a high number of students are still exposed to structural, academic, socio-economic, and psychological barriers that influence retention and educational achievement. Here, Early Warning Systems (EWS) have become a pioneering international set of strategies that can be used to proactively recognize vulnerable students and learners prior to the irreversible consequences of educational failure. This paper discusses the idea, importance, relevance and issues of Early Warning Systems in detecting at-risk learners in India. The research methodology is the qualitative review-based approach and relies on the official policy reports, books, and journals. The paper tells about recent school dropout in India, the applicability of EWS according to the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, the opportunities of learning analytics, attendance data, academic records, and behavioural indicators to create an Indian model of learner support. The results indicate that India is in dire need of institutionalized early identification systems, particularly in school and higher education environments that are characterized by digital inequality, first-generation students, and diverse educational preparedness. The paper concludes that EWS can be a significant educational facilitating tool in India provided it is adopted ethically, contextually and with robust human intervention systems and not as merely technological surveillance tools.