The report titled ‘2021 State of the Education Report for India: No Teacher, No Class’ also noted that while teacher availability has improved, the student-teacher ratio in secondary schools is still unfavourable.
The current student strength in the teaching workforce is over 1 million teachers and the need is likely to increase given the shortage of teachers at certain education levels and in subjects such as early childhood education, special education, physical education, music, arts. and curriculum streams of vocational education, says the report. “In fifteen years, about 30 percent of the current workforce will need to be replaced,” it said.
“There is a clear need to improve both the availability and deployment of qualified teachers in the north-eastern states of India. In terms of infrastructure, the working conditions of teachers in the northeastern and aspirational districts are poor. The provision of school libraries is low, Information and communication technology (ICT) infrastructure is scant, and there is rural-urban disparity.
“While teacher availability has improved, student-teacher ratios in secondary schools are unfavourable. Furthermore, there is no information on the availability of special education, music, art and physical education teachers. Availability and deployment of subject teachers is also good. Not well documented and monitored. Almost all single-teacher schools are in rural areas,” the report said.
The report released by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) states that the teaching profession in India has an “average position”, but it is the career of choice especially for women and youth from rural areas.
“Private school teachers and early childhood education teachers are highly vulnerable groups, many of whom work without contract for low wages, with no health or maternity leave benefits,” it said.
Calling for more “professional autonomy” for teachers, the report said, “the teacher workload is high – contrary to public perception – though invisible, and a source of stress. Teachers are being given professional autonomy , and disregarding it is depressing.”
“The voice of teachers in the system in matters of policy and governance can be increased through professional teacher networks and unions. Most accountability systems emphasize monitoring. Professional standards need to be part of a larger system and used in context. is professional development rather than accountability,” it added.
The report, prepared using data from the Unified District Information System for Education (UDISE), also found that the COVID-19 pandemic has exposed teachers’ vulnerability and insecurities.
“The profession is overall gender balanced, with women accounting for about 50 percent of the teaching workforce, but there are significant inter-state and urban-rural variations,” it said.
“There is a need for special attention in rural areas, districts with high SC and ST population and in the North-East of India as a whole, where there is a need to improve and rationalize the ratio of teachers to students. In these ‘hard for employees’ ‘Working conditions’ areas also need to be improved. More state support for teacher education programs in these areas is desirable,” the report recommends.
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