SHORTAGE of teachers at Higher Secondary Colleges and such other anomalies are causing severe setback in the country’s education sector. A national daily on Saturday reported that nine government schools which introduced college section eight years ago mainly in rural areas are yet to get any teacher when teachers are also overcrowding in the capital with attachment to colleges and even non-teaching organizations only to stay in the metropolis.
Since they are not having any college teacher, teachers in the school section are giving lessons to college students from Class XI-XII who are not in fact well-educated and trained for the purpose. Higher Secondary courses are extensive that school teachers are not expected to handle properly. Needless to say if the government is so indifferent to run the government colleges properly why it gives permission to open colleges so easily.
Another question is why the government is not regularly recruiting teachers to overcome teachers’ shortage. This is most urgent when the number of schools and colleges is steadily rising with exponential rise in the number of students. When the authorities concerned said the government is working to amend teachers’ recruitment rules to go for recruitment, it appears they are in fact sidetracking the major issue. It does not make sense that such change of rules requires years together. It is total irresponsibility at the government policymakers’ level who are sitting idle without taking up teachers’ recruitment blaming this or that. The Education Ministry must be held accountable for it.
Teaching is highly complicated matter that not only needs more schools and colleges but also simultaneous recruitment of teachers and their training to make sure quality education and its diversification to skill development in new areas. We must say the government can’t blame shortage of money for hiring teachers. Its revenue expenditure is soaring every year on many areas not properly justified. Moreover corruption and misuse of funds are taking away the big chunk of budgetary fund at a time when fund shortage for teachers can’t be an acceptable reason.
At present teacher-student ratio in public colleges is 1:145; which not only outlines how overcrowded the classrooms are and students are missing quality teaching. We know the government now easily gives permission to set up new schools and colleges mainly on political ground to claim the government success in education. Many party men are taking such initiatives as business projects to mint money. But such schools and colleges without teachers and then quality teachers are creating the mess.
In our view the government should send all teachers now overcrowding in the city to schools and colleges in the countryside while speedy recruitment of teachers must be taken to make government schools and colleges properly functional.
