Reforming the art of chalking the blackboard
By Aditi Pathak and Anshika Mary Mathews
“Teacher Quality is an important consideration in student achievement, and although defined
differently by different people, it continues to be a central concern of those responsible for
teacher education. Quality teachers are products of quality teacher education programs,
policies, and practices.” (UNESCO - ILO).
The first thought that you get when you think about school certainly is about special teachers who may have changed your perspective on a particular subject and also life. At the same time, a majority of us never really liked learning because of the way we were taught and we conveniently put the onus on the teachers. The problem faced during our education lies deeper, part of which can be attributed to teachers’ training in the country. This article is an attempt to voice out these gaps and to shed light on the bigger picture.
According to the Nation Council for Teacher Education, teacher training is a programme of education, research, and training of persons to teach from pre-primary to higher education level. Being the third-largest education system after the United States and China, India’s current teacher’s education system seems to be dwindling as it has now narrowed down to a monetary business. This has led to major consequences and a heavy compromise on the quality of education imparted to students and the education teachers possess. There is a huge gap between the knowledge imparted and the way it is received, teacher-student relationship, psychological and emotional connection, incentivization of teachers, and motivation in students and teachers.
A nation is defined by its people and they are represented by the background of their education and learning. India ranked 115 out of 157 countries in 2019 and 116 among 174 countries in 2020 in the Human Capital Index which measures health and education. The score has increased from 0.44 in 2018 to 0.49 in 2020. Clearly showing a very minimal increase in the Index which also has knowledge as one of its components. This demonstrates that there are gaps in the knowledge sector. Every child has the right to education, to which the government has already paved a path through the Right to Education Act (2009), but crucial role players in bringing this to life are the teachers. They have the power to make and break the life of students and it totally depends on how they pass their acquired education. Teachers need to be trained, skilled and updated with new technologies that attract students to study. Learning is considered to be a boring everyday task for children because they are approached with it in a certain way that does not give them the interest to study. One in six teachers is not professionally trained which highlights the issue further.
There is a need for quality teachers due to the increasing diversification of education, universal access to elementary education, vocationalisation of secondary, higher and professional education. Implementation of Right to Education along with Sustainable Development Goals produces a greater requirement of quality teachers for the better reformation of the education system. There has been a shift in paradigm involving new innovative ideas and experiments like visual learning, field-based projects, involvement of artificial intelligence and more technological advances. It has been observed that many teachers are unable to implement the new curriculum in a more effective and student-friendly manner while the others are unequipped and lack the needed skills for quality implementation of the new curriculum involving new and advanced approaches.
The blog proposes certain recommendations that may enhance the quality of teacher training leading to better-skilled teachers. Thus, resulting in a higher standard of education.
Salary
I clearly remember my teachers rushing home after school and along with them my classmates as well. It got me thinking about why my teachers would teach the same thing to the same students. Salaries must increase so that teachers are able to meet their needs and do not have to channelize via coaching. To remove salary disparity among regions, boards (ICSE, CBSE and State boards) must set a minimum standard. Coaching is very time-consuming for both teachers and students. There is usually a bias that is visible in teaching procedures at coaching centers and the same information that is given in schools is taught in such centers as well. Students pay an extra fee for what could be received in schools from the fees they already pay. Private schools, in particular, have an increment which is very minimal, up to Rs.200 per month after a year (12% increment for 17 months). Teachers may take part in certificate training and other programs apart from in-service education with a minimum time frame of four weeks which could act as a means for the institution to set their salaries according to their skill sets. Higher skills amount to higher salaries. The certificate training cost could be rendered through: -
Sponsoring IT companies [e.g.- TATA (CSR)] This could be a policy made by the government to make Right to Education more real, these are big corporate firms in themselves to which the CSR role also applies, and sponsoring would also be beneficial to these companies as to when the teachers do better their investment gets them name and profit.
The amount can be divided between the school, central government and state government and some amount of fee collected from the interested teacher. One of the strategies under consideration by the National Partnership is a proposal to develop a national certification system for recognising teachers who attain high teaching standards. A certification system linked to teacher remuneration and career progression could provide strong incentives for all teachers.
B.Ed. Degree
“The performance of vibrant fresh graduates with a flair for teaching is far better than those who land in B.Ed. colleges with non-impressive academic records in graduation and post-graduation”, a functionary of private school management said. Private schools have started appointing teachers without a B.Ed. degree as a compulsion. A B.Ed. degree in India costs between 6000- 1,00,000 rupees. There is no need for a compulsory B.Ed. degree as the training program could be reformed as one that imparts knowledge in a comprehensive manner in all the aspects needed to make a quality teacher. This would reduce the financial burden of a student-teacher motivating them to focus on imparting quality teaching and not collect degrees for name’s sake.
Counseling
The last few words of an eight-page long suicide note of a student from the Indian Institute of Technology, Hyderabad reads, “Live a little every day, you have got but one life.” According to the National Crime Records Bureau, 28 students kill themselves every day. There is a dire need for student counselors in every school and a need to make mental health concerns of attention among parents and students. Moral science and ethics must be made a compulsory and effective subject in the curriculum of the teachers’ training program, also providing a platform for teachers to share about mental health and other such issues freely. Teachers should be trained and sensitized during their training period on how to observe, monitor, and respond to students at an individual level and not through one size fit for all mechanisms. Teachers in rural and urban areas should have trained with a better understanding of cultural and traditional needs and the respective gaps in their areas. E.g. – A teacher in a remote location in Bihar would have to account for orthodox behavior to encourage learning for students especially girls, while this may not be an issue for teachers in Metropolitan cities.
Children with special needs like autism, dyslexia, Down syndrome will need special attention which is not possible unless the teachers are trained. They need to be sensitized about their special needs to ensure equity in class which will result in a behavioral change in their classmates and make them more accommodative towards such kids.
Decentralised approach
Classes could be divided into small committees involving teachers and members of the management to resolve basic classroom problems like kids needing extra classes for being differently-abled or slower to catch with the others. Pondering over this takes us back to our school days highlighting the National Institute of Open Schooling where students who could not catch up to the mainstream heavy subjects were given an opportunity in NIOS where they could learn subjects of their liking spread across literature, social science, home science, sports and many more. Each category of board members could have a meeting once in 2 months gap for discussing the issues and solutions, to be on par, and to resolve issues from a bottom-up approach. A healthy work environment should be provided to teachers – basic facilities like toilets for female teachers. An increase in the importance of anonymous feedback from students and parents is under the prerogative of the board members and teacher faculty.
Technological usage
In the year 2010, I remember our eyes stuck to the walls of our classrooms as a new projector was being put up. How playful geography lessons became as we saw what a gulf and archipelago was rather than drawing a diagram about it. 10 years later with the advancement of technology teachers have so many new innovative methods to teach. Through this teachers should help children, engulf concepts with sponsors from the government, schools, or private companies (CSR). E.g.- 6D and 7D technologies for recreating teaching material, GIS technology for subjects like Geography. There can also be allied and bridge courses for teachers to upgrade their teaching skills with technology.
Deficit to surplus
The report is to focus on the shift of teachers from surplus to deficit schools and the reformation of the teacher cadre structure. The incentives could include a higher pay grade, providing higher incentives like an allowance for stay, transport facilities which could be on par with inflation rates of the urban areas, considered as a certificate program adding greater value to their professional progress. The government can provide schemes in this line of service. An integrated teacher education approach could be followed which is in alignment with the NCTE norms majorly focuses on imparting school leadership, IT skills, English Proficiency and also covers pedagogy requirements for each subject. The NITI Aayog in its report suggests having schools in closer proximity, especially in rural areas as it would be easier for teachers to travel with provisions of travel allowances and other incentives.
Corporate Social Responsibility
Companies supporting CSR as one of their thrust areas have education in Clause ii of Schedule VII of the Companies Act, 2013 and can add teacher training programs as one of the areas that they could efficiently spend their budget on.
Teacher training
Teachers retire at the age of 60 years. Their countless services that lead to so much experience can be utilised even later in the field of education. The retired teachers who are willing could be incorporated as teacher trainers in the teacher education program as someone with good experience and knowledge could be an asset to the institution. Also, there can be a provision added where 2 years before retirement a teacher must have a compulsory window where they teach at teacher training institutions and train the student teachers. These 2 years would also help them be abreast with the innovation and dynamism of the education system where they could contribute their leanings of past years leading to an intersection of technology and human experience. Not only will they be giving back to the students but also will be trained technologically which is very important in this day and age. Most importantly they will be occupied with work rather than feeling left out after years of service. India has an increasing youth population in the world which makes it the greatest contributor of innovative minds. Education plays a major role in creating individuals that shape the future of our country. These issues highlight the gaps that could be filled by the recommendations mentioned above to bring quality national professional standards for teachers. Teachers play an important role in not only educating the students but also shaping their personalities, as Albert Einstein rightly said, “Education is what remains after one has forgotten what one has
learned in school.”
-Aditi is an intern at Takshashila and a Masters student at Mount Carmel College, Bangalore. Anshika is a Masters student at Mount Carmel College, Bangalore. Views are personal and do not represent Takshashila’s policy recommendations.