Enhancing Image & Benefits of Teachers

Group IIDevbrat Negi – 04Dinesh Sharma –

05Kuldeep Singh –

08Kumar Rajesh - 09

Why this topic ?

Teachers are a lot who are not given their due status by the society

Lack of pride in teachingTheir jobs are less remunerative as

compared to their responsibilitiesThey are not recognized as

professionals

Reasons for choosing teaching as a career

Different reasons for men & women :MEN :Some choose this career when they

could not pursue their preferred choiceAs a stop gap while preparing for better

jobsThey could not get any other jobGetting job is comparatively easier since

it is presumed that anybody can do it

Reasons contd…

WOMEN :Women picked this profession because of

less work, so as to manage house and work together

Being a second earner of the family, money is not the only consideration

They prefer less demanding and limited engagement hours job

Prefer jobs in their vicinitySafety and security are important

considerations

Key statistics

A teaching job does not compensate for the need of decent living and hence male teachers rely on tuition money to support their family’.

The teaching profession is popular among women in India as it’s a secured job, and also time bound and above all a noble and respectable profession.

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Different types of schools in India

Private Schools : Unaided schools Aided Schools

Government schools

Status of teachers in India

National Policy on Education (NPE) devotes a section in its report. It states :

The status of teachers reflects the socio cultural ethos of the society

The Government and the community should Endeavour to create conditions that will motivate and inspire teachers.

The programme of actions stressed these important issues :

Pay and service conditions of teachers have to be commensurate with their social and educational responsibilities

Teachers’ association must play an active role in enhancing the dignity of the teachers

Teacher’s profile and associated characteristics

Teachers constitute a single largest group of educated and professionally qualified workers in India

They account for 11.2 % of total work force of government employees

Common Ground

The work of teachers start with building the thinking of the children at the beginning itself

They build the foundation on which the child and nation’s future is built

Role of teachers is very important and their skills should be developed

Encouraging atmosphere may be created in which a willing candidate joins this profession

Other work like – collection of data, doing survey for govt. etc should not be assigned to them – this may cause loss of focus

Common Ground contd…The professional status of teachers gradually

eroded not only for the community of stakeholders but also in eyes of teachers.

The Govt. school continue to provide poor quality of education and media & social leaders continue to blame the teachers. The very survival of teaching as a profession is in question as the social status of teachers continues to erode.

India faces a crisis of confidence with respect to teachers and teacher motivation is indeed a national issue.

Common Ground Contd..Eye Opener from OECD countries :The amount countries invest in teachers relative to their

available resources provides an approximate indication of the value countries place on education.

In OECD Countries the growth rate in teachers’ salaries

was lower than the growth rate in GDP per capita in most countries between 2000 and 2008.

However, from 2008 to 2009, most countries experienced an increase in teachers’ salaries relative to GDP per capita.

This is likely to be a result of the sharp slowdown in GDP

growth in the aftermath of the financial crisis.

Political interference

In hiringIn promotionsIn selection process

Stakeholders

1. School Teachers2. Potential aspirants for teachers3. Children and their parents4. Policy Makers5. Independent researchers6. Government7. Other epistemic communities8. Society at large

Evidence & Ammunition Primary teachers are not given due

importance by the society as well as the government. It causes demotivation among teachers

Teachers feel they have under achievedTheir job is monotonousWork load is tremendous – so many non

teaching tasksSocial distance between teachers and

students is very wide in govt. schools, which cater to poor children

Evidence & Ammunition contd..

Working conditions are not commensurate with the profession

According the data : - 62 % schools function in one or two

rooms - 17 % do not have black boards - 29 % rural schools do not have toilets Most teachers feel that they do not

have adequate opportunities for up-scaling the skills

Communication Plan

1. Partnership development2. Campaigning3. Publishing4. Using the media

Partnership development

1. Partnership arrangement with NGOs for spreading awareness

2. Engaging activists3. With Policy makers4. With local authorities5. With parents6. With Teachers’ Association 7. With politicians & opinion leaders8. Eminent Educationists

Campaigning

Slogan : A teacher takes a hand, opens a mind, and

touches a heart or Good teachers are costly, but bad teachers

cost moreMessage : Indebted to my father for living, but to my

teacher for living well or A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell

where his influence stops

Publishing

(A former teacher and NGO worker in Rajasthan)

Jara sochiye!Quite apart from this salary, the

primary teacher is called a Grade III teacher

The person who builds the

foundation is called ‘grade three’.

Squaring your conscience

• Did you ever see yourself as

teacher ?

• When you passed out from college, did you apply for a teacher job ?

Using the media

Bechara ?

I got both the jobs but the call letter for PTI came late.

“I wanted to become a Physical Training Instructor.Since jobs are difficult to get, I applied for

the post of grade III teacher also.

There was family pressure . So I decided to become a teacher” (A teacher)

Voices of teachers !“I do what is expected of me. I do have the desire to do new things, but time and opportunity do not come my way.”

“I will be happier if I get an opportunity to teach classes 6, 7 and 8. Our school is a primary school - that is my problem.”

“I am not satisfied - because my home and parents live 35 km away and I am not able to look after them.”

Conclusion

i. Adhocism such as appointing para teachers is demeaning the status of teachers

ii. It gives an impression that anybody, who has minimum education qualification, can teach and as such this work does not require specific skills and talent

iii. It reflects the low value given to the teachers

iv. Teacher’s role is very important in life of a child

Conclusion contd…

v. Salary of Primary school teachers is equivalent to : Upper Division Clerks, staff nurses in hospitals etc. Given the amount of importance they have in the life of the child, their status must be enhanced.

vi. Like other organized services, there should be state level competitive examination for recruitment of teachers at regular interval for attracting better talents in this field

Conclusionvii. The nation requires good quality

teachers, and good quality can be achieved by enhancing the pay scales and benefits to the teachers

viii. Attracting, Developing and Retaining Effective Teachers is the immediate challenge

ix. Lack of cohesive working environment

x. Support staff not adequately trained