— Krish Lambah, Dr Shashank Shah

India’s school education system, the largest in the world with 15 lakh schools, 25 crore students, and 1 crore teachers, holds immense importance. Through the fundamental right to education enshrined in our Constitution, we have achieved phenomenal success over the last several decades in ensuring near 100% access to school education. The progress made so far highlights the potential and adaptability of the system.

However, there is now an urgent need to transition from access to ensuring quality of school education delivered to the masses. A focus on improving quality of teacher education will be central to this transformation. In this article, we propose that Teacher Education needs to focus on the ‘whole’ student—integrating the intelligence quotient (IQ) with emotional quotient (EQ) — while also incorporating a robust adoption of technology that can facilitate better educational outcomes for all students at scale.

India faces some challenges in its teacher training programs that require urgent attention. Many institutions lack modern curricula and infrastructure, while some teachers are not trained in specific aspects of education, both of which limits the ability of teachers to effectively engage students. For instance, 31% of teachers in India are still not highly proficient with digital tools, reflecting the pressing need to integrate ICT into teacher education. Furthermore, the current teacher education system often emphasizes theoretical knowledge over practical teaching skills, leaving teachers unprepared for student reactions and responsiveness to their methods.

Additionally, the salary structure undervalues primary educators, despite their critical role in nurturing young minds during formative years. While 56.5% of primary teachers participate in in-service training, these programmes often lack newly updated content and pedagogical specifics as relevant to Gen Alpha students who are ‘digital natives’, thereby limiting their impact on teaching quality.

There is also a disparity amongst the quality of teacher training across states. While Kerala and Rajasthan have excelled in teacher education, Bihar and Jharkhand continue to struggle in this field. States like Assam and Telangana have high potential but face contextual challenges. In some states, there are challenges of infrastructure such as lack of libraries, laboratories, and modern teaching aids. In other states, there is an insufficient number of District Institutes of Education and Training (DIETs) to meet the needs of its population. But the more serious challenge is of mindsets.

The absence of selectivity in admissions to teacher training programmes means that many entrants lack the motivation or aptitude required for teaching. Often, the profession becomes the last option for a candidate who doesn’t succeed in gaining a job in any other sector. Hence, addressing funding gaps, upgrading facilities, and improving the selection process are crucial to improving teacher education. Moreover, expanding teacher training centres, introducing comprehensive in-service training, and modernizing the curriculum can ensure sustained progress.

Learning from global models can provide valuable insights to enhance teacher education in India. Finland’s education system, renowned worldwide for its unique approach, emphasizes rigorous training, mandatory internships, and selective admissions to ensure a highly skilled teaching workforce. Teachers in Finland are required to hold master’s degrees and undergo extensive pedagogical and research-based training. While India cannot replicate this exact model due to its teacher shortage, elements like improved training quality and mandatory practical teaching experience can be adopted.

China’s National Teacher Training Programme (NTTP) offers another model, particularly in addressing rural education needs. The programme prioritises practical classroom readiness through structured in-service training and demo teaching. By leveraging technology, the NTTP also provides remote learning opportunities for teachers in underserved areas. Adopting such practices in India can bridge the urban-rural divide in teacher training and improve the overall quality of education.

Despite its existing problems, India’s education system still ranks among the leading education systems among developing countries. Our teacher education system has its merits and is very well set up with many institutions and policymakers contributing to it. It has seen a great deal of progress since India’s Independence and has the potential to grow into one of the top systems in the world. Towards this end, we make a few policy recommendations. Education Budget: Align with the NEP’s recommendation and increase the allocation to education budget to 6% of GDP at the earliest. This will enable enhancements in infrastructure, teacher salaries, and training programmes across the nation.

Teacher Qualification and Salaries: Focus on continuous professional development by introducing rigorous pre-service and in-service training programmes. Increase teacher salaries to attract and retain talent, offering parity with professions requiring similar qualifications. Public school teachers should also receive benefits such as health insurance and post-retirement social security.

Selection Process: Strengthen the entry criteria for B.Ed. programmes with higher grade requirements and implement a post-B.Ed. test. Incorporate interviews to assess pedagogical skills, enthusiasm, and aptitude for teaching. These changes may be piloted in states with low pupil-teacher ratios.

In-Service Training: Conduct Rregular evaluations of teachers should be conducted, including live teaching assessments and feedback from peers and students. Mandate targeted training for underperforming teachers and encourage voluntary participation in skill development programmes.

Curriculum Enhancement: Embed ICT and AI in teacher education to prepare teachers for digital classrooms and for teaching Gen Beta that will enter classrooms by 2030. Introduce emotional intelligence (EI) modules to help teachers foster empathy, human values, and social skills among students, creating inclusive and supportive learning environments.

Rural Teacher Education: Establish a National Rural Teacher Training Council (NRTTC) to develop region-specific training programmes, offer subsidized education, and provide financial and non-financial incentives for teachers working in rural areas. Training modules should include a focus on local languages and cultural contexts.

India’s education system has demonstrated remarkable resilience and potential. However, the challenges in teacher education and training must be urgently addressed to realise the vision of a Viksit Bharat by 2047. Today’s children will be the backbone of tomorrow’s society. Hence nurturing them with ability and nobility is a fundamental necessity. Through aforementioned policy reforms, India can create a world-class teacher training ecosystem that strengthens its educational foundations and positions itself as a global leader in education.

(Krish Lambah is a student at The Cathedral and John Connon School, Mumbai and Dr. Shashank Shah is Chevening Gurukul Fellow’22, University of Oxford, UK)