Bihar:State plans to rope in engrs for science teaching in schools
Call it an admission of the harsh education truths or desperation to find some instant and viable solution, Bihar government may go in for out of box measures to meet the growing shortfall of quality science teachers in state’s secondary and higher secondary education.
Finding good science teachers has become difficult.With quality teachers of physics, chemistry, mathematics and biology hard to find and average ones not even qualifying, as per teachers’ eligibility norms, the government now plans to induct engineers as teachers.
As the engineers don’t usually have a B.Ed or other teacher-education degrees, the government plans to relax the norms for their induction on contract basis on a much higher salary.
Education minister Ashok Choudhary said the government would have to plan something different to ensure quality education at the secondary and higher secondary levels and a paradigm shift may be in offing with regard to policy.
“Inducting engineers is an option we have discussed, as finding qualified teachers of science is turning out to be difficult. With so many unemployed engineers,, teaching can be a good option for them also. Having studied science, they will certainly be better. We will also try to look into the possibility of paying them a better wage scale to attract the talented lot,” he added.
Choudhary said once the draft of the road map reaches him, he would discuss it at the highest levels. “We are also studying various concepts used in other states, viz. there is a provision of junior colleges in southern states like Tamil Nadu, Karnataka -models, which could be followed for a revamp,” he added.
The stark reality – a result of the waning education system – was evident in the 2011 state teachers’ eligibility test (STET). It laid bare the quality of teacher aspirants, who were all graduates or post-graduates from state universities but lacked the wherewithal to engage meaningful classes. In Physics, just eight teachers qualified in STETof whom three were trained and rest untrained.
In other science subjects, as also English, the number of qualifying candidates were was
