Centrally Sponsored Scheme on Teacher Education

Original Scheme

As envisaged in the National Policy on Education (NPE), 1986, and its Programme of Action (POA), a Centrally-Sponsored Scheme of Restructuring and Reorganization of Teacher Education was launched in 1987 to create a sound institutional infrastructure for pre-service and in-service training of elementary & secondary school teachers and for provision of academic resource support to elementary and secondary schools. The Scheme had, the following component:

  • Setting up of District Institutes of Education and Training (DIETs)
  • Strengthening of Secondary Teachers Education Institutions into Colleges of Teacher Education (CTEs) and Institutes of Advanced Study in Education (IASEs)
  • Strengthening of State Councils of Educational Research and Training (SCERTs)

Under the Scheme, recurring and non-recurring Central assistance is provided to the State Governments as resource support to the DIETs, CTEs, IASEs and SCERTs

Revised Scheme Under Xth Five Year Plan

The Scheme was revised under the X Plan, with the following main objectives :

  • Speedy completion of DIET/CTE/IASE/SCERT projects, which have been sanctioned but not completed up to the end of the IX Plan period
  • Making DIETs, CTEs, IASEs sanctioned (and SCERTs strengthened) upto the IX Plan period, optimally functional and operational
  • Sanction and implementation of fresh DIET/CTE/IASE/SCERT projects to the extent necessary
  • Improvement in the quality of programmes being undertaken by DIETs, etc. – especially those of pre-service and in-service training, so as to enable them to effectively play their nodal role of improving quality of elementary and secondary education in their respective jurisdiction, as measured in terms of levels of learner achievement

Revision of the Scheme

The Central Government entrusted the National Council for Educational Research & Training (NCERT) to evaluate the Teacher Education Scheme. The NCERT submitted its Report in August, 2009. The Report contains several recommendations for revising the Scheme. The Ministry is in the process of revising the Scheme.

Reforms in Teacher Education

The Department has initiated the process of revision of the Teacher Education Scheme. The revised Scheme is guided by the following factors :

  • To integrate teacher education with overall education development in the States;
  • The need for expansion of capacity of teacher education institutions, especially in some of the deficit States of East and North-Eastern Region;
  • Address the problem of large number of untrained teachers and the possibility of large number of persons being recruited (because of the Pupil Teacher Ratio (PTR) specified in the RTE Act) without possessing the prescribed professional qualification;
  • Expanding institutional capacity to provide in-service training for secondary school teachers in light of the Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA);
  • Strengthening the decentralized structures of BRCs and CRCs to provide adequate institutional support for professional development of school teachers on a continuous basis;
  • To link elementary teacher education with the higher education system;
  • To develop and put in place a mechanism to monitor the implementation of the Scheme on various physical and financial parameters with pre-defined outcomes for improving the overall quality of various activities of the teacher education institutions.

The main components of the revised scheme are as under :

  • Modification in Centre-State financial sharing pattern, from the existing 100% central assistance to sharing pattern in the ratio of 75:25 for all States/UTs (90:10 for NER States, including Sikkim)
  • Continuation of support to SCERTs/SIEs
  • Strengthening and re-structuring of SCERTs
  • Training for Educational Administrators, including Head Teachers
  • Orientation / Induction Training to Teacher Educators
  • Continuation of support to CTEs and establishment of new CTEs
  • Continuation of support to IASEs and establishment of new IASEs
  • Continuation of support to and restructuring of DIETs
  • Establishment of Block Institutes of Teacher Education (BITEs) for augmenting Teacher Education capacity in SC/ST and minority concentration areas
  • Professional Development of Teacher Educators
  • Technology in Teacher Education
  • Public-Private Partnership (PPP) in teacher education
  • Monitoring mechanism
Last Updated by admin on Wednesday, 20 November 2013 - 11:36am