Learning to teach
with the fact that, for years, the quality of our teacher education has remained the same. Based on an extremely inadequate and shaky graduation in science or the arts, our teachers go through the charade of a nine-month course in teacher education. That 99 per cent of the candidates failed to clear the recent Central Entrance Test for teachers is not as much of an indictment as the fact that we have allowed teacher education over the years to slip to such levels.
The ASER report is unlikely to find better results in the next few years. But if we get our act together now, we can be certain that there will be glad tidings. It will take years, but there will be results to show. It will take a systemic overhaul. In a complex system with multiple inter-linkages, it will mean simultaneously addressing many fronts. We will have to identify these critical levers and then stick to them.
The first priority is a complete revamp of teacher education. The government has identified this as a key item in the 12th Five Year Plan. The Justice Verma Commission on teacher education appointed by the Supreme Court has come out with recommendations, incorporating suggestions from knowledgeable people in the country. The key is to implement well, for we have a history of excellent policies and poor execution. We cannot afford to miss this time. Good pedagogical training can never be built on a poor disciplinary foundation. The complexity of this exercise becomes clear
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