Structure of Teacher Education System in India by Garima Tandon

Structure of Teacher Education System in India

1. By,
Garima Tandon
B.Sc., B.Ed., M.Ed.
Banaras Hindu University

Structure of Teacher Education System in India
Due to explosion of knowledge, there is a spread of education not only
in India, but all over the world. Due to this change, social needs are changed
accordingly. A teacher is expected to face the new changes by undergoing
through training for new trends in education. The overall structure of teacher
education system in India can be understand under 2 broad categories:
1. Structural organization of Agencies related to Teacher Education
2. Programmes related to Teacher Education

1. Structural organization of Agencies related to Teacher
Education
Keeping in mind the promotion of education throughout the world and proper
implementation of policies and programmes, different academic support
structures are set up at different levels. Such needs are satisfied by different
agencies at different levels as pointed below:

*•International Level
*•National Level
*•State Level
*•Local Level

2. There are various agencies at each level to satisfy the need of teacher training.
Agencies related to teacher education system with special reference to India are
described below:




National Level Agencies

A. NCTE (National Council for Teacher Education)-
Kothari commission Report (1964-66) criticized Teacher Education Programme
being conventional, rigid and away from reality. Therefore it expressed the need
of establishing National council of Teacher Education in order to improve the
standard of Teacher Education. In September 1972, Central Advisory Board in
Education accepted the said proposal which was supported by fifth National plan.
Thereafter by law, Indian Education Ministry established NCTE on 21st May
1973. NCTE has got independent constitutional status since 1995 under the
National Council for Teacher Education Act, 1993.
Agencies of Teacher Education in India at
different levels
National Level State Level Local Level
 NCTE
 UGC
 NAAC
 NCERT
 NUEPA
 SIE/
SCERT
 SBTE
 UDE
 DIET
 BRC
 CRC

3. Headquarter- New Delhi
Chairperson- Dr, Satbir Bedi
Affiliations- Department of Higher Education, MHRD
Organizational Set-up-
 The Council
 The Executive Committee
 Regional Committee
 Appeal Committee
 Inspection Team
 Visiting Team
NCTE functions through the following standing committees:
Pre – Primary, primary teachers’ education committee.
Secondary college - teacher education committee.
Special education - teacher education committee.
In-service - teacher - education committee.
Programs Recognized-
 D.E.C.Ed. (Diploma in Early Childhood Education)
 D.El.ED. (Diploma in Elementary Education)
 B.El.ED. (Bachelor of Elementary Education)
 B.Ed. (Bachelor of Education)
 M.Ed. (Master of Education)
 B.P.Ed. (Bachelor of Physical Education)
 M.P.Ed. (Master of Physical Education)
 D.V.A.Ed. (Diploma in Visual Arts Education)
 D.P.A.Ed. (Diploma in Performing Arts Education etc.

4. B. UGC (University Grants Commission)-
Established on 28th December, 1953, at New Delhi. UGC was given autonomy
by govt. of India in 1956 by an Act of Parliament. It get decentralized in 1994-95.
Headquarter- New Delhi
Chairman- Dr. D.P. Singh
Regional Centres- It have 6 regional centres in:
 Pune
 Bhopal
 Kolkata
 Hyderabad
 Guwahati
 Bangalore.

Major committees, centres working under UGC-
A. Teacher Education Committees-
To upgrade the standard of education, Teacher-education Committees were
formed consisting of seven members for two years duration. It provides
awareness of new innovations and research in teacher-education. The national
fellowship and teacher fellowship are granted for encouraging research and
teaching work.
B. Centre for Advanced Studies (CASE):
For the improvement of standards of teaching and research in India, UGC has set
up CASE in different branches of knowledge. It selected the faculty of Education
and Psychology, Baroda as the CASE in Education which functions on an all
India basis and aims at raising standards of teaching and research in education. It
has built up its programme in collaboration with research workers from outside.

5. C. NCERT (National Council of Educational Research and
Trainaing)-
NCERT is an autonomous - organization, working as an academic wing of the
Ministry of Education. It is registered under the societies Registration Act, 1960
and function as the academic advisor to the Ministry of Education and Social
Welfare. It is wholly financed by the Department of School Education and
Literacy, MHRD, Government of India. It assists the said ministry in the
formulation and implementation of its policies and programmes in the field of
Education. It is expected to encourage student teachers and teacher educators to
conduct educational research.
Established on- September 1, 1961
Headquarter- New Delhi
President- Ramesh Pokhriyal (Nishank)
Director- Dr. Hrushikesh Senapaty
Chairman- Prof. Mrinal Miri
Organizational Structure-



NCERT
General Body Executive Committee

6. A. General Body- The Union Ministry for Education and Youth Services is the
President of the General body of the council. The Chairman of UGC and the
secretary or the secretary of the H.R.D. Ministry and Social Welfare are its
Ex-Officio members. Four vice-chancellor of universities in different zones
of the country are nominated to the membership of the council. All the above
member constitute the General body of NCERT.
B. Executive Committee- The Administration of NCERT is in the hands of
executive committee which comprised of Director, Joint Director, Dean
Academic and Research, Dean Co-ordination and Secretary.
Constituent units–
 National Institute of Education (NIE);
 Central Institute of Educational Technology (CIET), New Delhi,
 Five Regional Colleges of Education at Ajmer, Bhopal, Bhubaneswar,
Mysore and Shillong;
 Pandit Sunderlal Sharma Central Institute of Vocational Education
(PSSCIVE), Bhopal; and
 Field Advisers’ officers in the States.

NIE and CIET are elaborated below:
 NIE (National Institute of Education)-
In order to fulfil the objectives of NCERT, NIE Functions through 9 departments,
7 units and 2 cells as under:
Departments of NIE-
i. Academic Department
ii. Production Department
iii. Department of Maths Education

7. iv. Department of textbooks
v. Department of Teacher education
vi. Department of Teaching Aids
vii. Department of Educational Psychology Publication Department
viii. Department of Educational Psychology Workshop Department
ix. Department of Text - books.
Different unit under NIE-
i. National Talent Search unit
ii. Survey and Data processing Unit
iii. Policy, planning and Evaluation Unit
iv. Library and Documentation Unit
v. Vocationalization of Education Unit
vi. Examination Reform unit
vii. Examination Research unit
Different Cells under NIE-
i. Primary Curriculum
ii. Journals cell
Courses under NIE-
 B.Ed.
 4 year integrated B.Sc. B.Ed. & B.A. B.Ed.
 M.Ed.

 CIET-
It is here to encourage the use of Educational technology in the spread of
education, Organize training programmes in connection with school-

8. broadcasting and Educational Television, and to develop learning aids based on
Educational technology.

D. NIEPA/NUEPA (National Institute of Educational Planning and
Administration/ National University of Educational Planning and
Administration -
The NUEPA is the national apex institution in the field of educational planning
and administration. The national university has its origin dating back in 1962
when the UNESCO established the Asian Regional Centre for Educational
Planners and Administrators (ARCEPA) which later go through following stages
and finally established as NUEPA in 2006.


NUEPA is an autonomous body established by the ministry of
Human Resource Development, Government of India. It is a prime organization
dealing with capacity building and research in planning and management of
education not only in India, but also in South Asia. The Government of India has
empowered it to award its own degree by way of conferring on it the Status of
1962
•Asian Regional Centre for Educational Planners and Administrators (ARCEPA)
1965
•Asian Institute of Education Planning and Administration (AIEPA)
1969
•National Staff for Educational Planners and Administrators (NSEPA)
1979
•National Institute of Educational Planning and Administration (NIEPA)
2006
•National University of Educational Planning and Administration (NUEPA)

9. deemed university in August 2006. Like any other Central university NUEPA is
fully maintained by Government of India.
State Level Agencies

A. SIE (State Institute of Education )/SCERT (State Council of
Education Research and Training)-
The first step taken in the direction of the setting of SCERT’s on
the pattern of NCERT in all the states and union territories of India was the
D.O.No.F. 19-17/78-SCH-5 dated 23.3.79 from Mrs. J. Anjani Dayanand, the
Joint Secretary, Department of Education, Ministry of Education and S.W.,
Government of India, addressed to the State Secretaries. This Magna Carta of
qualitative improvement programme is an important document. Most of the SIEs
were established in 1964 with their functions of training, extension, research and
Publication limited to elementary education. After some time functions related to
secondary and higher secondary education were included in the domain of SIE in
some states. SIEs in some states took the responsibility of Science education,
teaching of English, audio-visual education, teacher training and vocational
guidance, etc. Later on, SIEs were renamed as SCERT.SCERT is in fact a
counterpart of NCERT in the State. It has been given the responsibility of
overseeing the work done in the academic wing of the School Education Board
in the area of curriculum renewal and development of textbooks.
Structure-
It is headed by Director of education. It‘s various departments are looked after by
second class gazetted officer. It has an advisory Board presided by Education
Minister of the State.

10. Major units of SCERT-
Department of Curriculum Development
Department of Training and Extension and
Department of Educational Technology
Teacher - education department
Extension services department
Research department
Evaluation department
Population Education department
Publicity Department etc.
SBTE (State Board of Teacher Education)-
Kothari Commission for the first time in 1966 recommended for
establishing SBTE, whose main function was to develop teacher education in the
state to be administered by the state board. State boards were established in M.P
in 1967, and Maharashtra, Jammu and Kashmir and Tamil Nadu in 1973. Ministry
of education forced states to have SBTE suggestions NCERT such boards almost
all states established.
B. UDE (University Departments of Education)-
In 1917, first education department was started at Calcutta University. At present
there are departments of education in all the Indian Universities for M.Ed. and
Ph.D. Degrees. UGC provides the grants to the University Department of
education.

Local Level Agencies
A. DIET (District Institute of Education and Training)-

11. The agency which is responsible for providing pre-service, in-service education
to elementary school teachers, non-formal and adult-education is termed as
DIET. Between 1987-88 and 1991-92 central assistance was extended to set-up
287 DIETs.
DIET is the third district level support system for the qualitative
improvement of education in addition to National and state level agencies like
NCERT, NUEPA and SCERTs. It also caters to qualitative improvement as the
teacher are closer to the field and, thus, more sensitive to their problems and
needs. The mission of a DIET is to provide academic and resource support at the
grass root level for the success of various strategies and programmes being
undertaken in the area of elementary and adult education, with special reference
to (1) universalization of elementary education; (2) National Literacy Mission
target in regards to functional literacy in the age group 1535 years.
Special Target Group of DIETs-
1. Elementary school teachers, both pre-service and in-service.
2. Headmasters, head of school complexes, educational officers.
3. Instructors, supervisors for non-formal and adult education.
4. Members of District Boards of Education (DBEs) and Village Education
Committees (VECs), Community Teachers, Youth and other Volunteers
5. Resource person who will conduct suitable programmes for the target groups,
i.e. girls and women, SC/ST, minorities and Handicapped, other educationally
disadvantaged groups, e.g. working children, slum dwellers, inhabitants of hilly
areas, etc.
Different Branches under DIET-
In order to effectively carry out its function the DIET have seven branches as
pointed below:

12. i. Pre-service Teacher Education (PSTE)
ii. Work Experience (WE)
iii. District Resource Unit (DRU)
iv. In-Service programmes, Field Interaction & Innovation Coordination
(IFIC)
v. Curriculum Material Development and Evolution (CMDE)
vi. Educational Technology (ET) and
vii. Planning and Management Branch.
Throughout the country, linkage among important agencies of
teacher education at different levels and their association with Teacher Training
institutions can be understand by following diagram:


MHRD
NCTE
RCs
TEIs
NCERT
5 RIEs
Centrally sponsored
scheme for Re-
structuring & Re-
organization of Teacher
Education
SCERT
UGC
IASE
Colleges of Teacher
Education
NUEPA

13. [Where, MHRD- Ministry of Human Resource and Development; NCTE- National Council
for Teacher Education; RCs- Regional Committees; TEIs- Teacher Education Institutions;
NCERT- National Council of Educational Research and Training; RIEs- Regional Institutes
of Education; SCERT- State Council of Educational Research and Training; UGC- University
Grants Commission; IASE- Institute of Advanced Studies (Deemed University); NUEPA-
National University of Educational Planning and Management.]

2. Programmes related to Teacher Education
These are categorized below:

Level Programme Eligibility
Pre
Primary
TEP
NTT (Nursery Teacher Traning) 10+2
MTT (Montessori Teacher Training) 10+2
KTT (Kindergarten Teacher
Training)
10+2
Elementary
TEP
BTC (Basic Training Certificate 10+2+Graduation
D.El.Ed. (Diploma in Elementary
Education)
10+2+Graduation
Teacher Education Programmes (TEP)
Pre-
Primary
Elementary
Secondary
&
Senior
Secondary
Advance
Courses
Special
Programmes
Vocational
Courses

14. B.El.Ed. (Bachelor in Elementary
Education)
10+2+Graduation
PTC (Primary Teacher Certificate) 10+2+Graduation
TTC (Teacher Training Certificate) 10+2+Graduation
Secondary
& Senior
Secondary
TEP
B. (Bachelor of Education) 10+2+Graduation
B.Sc.-B.Ed. 10+2
B.A.-B.Ed. 10+2
Advance
Courses
M.Ed. (Master of Education) 10+2+Graduation
M.A. in Education 10+2+Graduation
Ph.D. 10+2+Graduation+B.Ed.
+M.Ed./M.A. in
Education
Special
Programme
B.Ed. Special 10+2+Graduation
M.Ed. Special 10+2+Graduation+B.Ed.
Special
B.Ed.-M.Ed. Special 10+2
Vocational
Courses
Diploma and Certificates As per the level of
Course

Merits and Limitations of Teacher Education System in India-
Merits and limitation of Indian Teacher Education Stem has been described under
some broad criterias of judgment as:
1. Number of Teacher Training Institution
2. Different Modes of Training
3. Online Courses (e.g. MOOC)
4. Privatization

15. 5. Duration of Programme
6. Semester System
7. Course Content
8. Internship
9. Mentoring
All these areas are critically analyzed below with special reference to
Teacher Education Programmes of India:

1. Number of Teacher Training Institution- Day by day number of
teacher education institutions have been increased and got approval and
certificate for accreditation by agencies related to approval and quality control
(e.g. NCTE, NAAC etc.).
Merit- We have quantitatively equal supply to demand.
Limitation- There is mushrooming of Teacher Training Institution without
quality considerations. Enhancement in quantity resulted in compromization with
quality of institution due to corruption involved in procedure of providing
recognition to Teacher Training Colleges. Without recommended infrastructure
and parameters many Teacher Education Institution have got recognition by
controlling organizations. Along with this, nepotism and corruption incorporated
in system also diminished the quality of teacher training institutions.

2. Different Modes of Training- Now various flexible and alternative
modes are available for teacher training such as distance mode, open and distance
mode etc.
Merit- It provide alternative options of training to those who have problem of
access such as students of rural areas, working women and men etc.

16. Limitation- This limit the teacher education programmes as source for degree
collection.

3. Online Courses- Now various online courses are also available to trained
the teachers of area where there is access issue such as MOOC etc.
Merit- This provides an alternative mode for training.
Limitation- There is problem of access due to internet problem and
inaccessibility of device for e-learning. There is also an issue regarding face to
face training.

4. Privatization- There is transfer of activities, assets and responsibility from
Government, Public Institutions and Organizations to Private individual and
agencies.
Merit- It helps to provide execution power to local bodies.
Limitation- It has considered only as source of more profit rather than
democratic involvement for quality improvement.
5. Duration of Programme- Duration of Teacher Education Programmes
(B.Ed. and M.Ed.) has been increased from 1 year to 2 year programme
Merit- Increase in duration of programme is helpful in quality improvement.
Limitation- Due to involvement and order of bureaucrats, there is
experimentation with duration of Teacher Education Programmes. From 1 year
programme, it has been converted to 2 year programme and now there is planning
to convert it in 4 year integrated programme.

17. 6. Semester System- In place of yearly system of training, semester system
has been introduced.
Merit- It is helpful in continuous evaluation practices.
Limitation- The pitfall regarding failure of this system is lack of punctuality.

7. Course Content and number of papers- There has been change in
course content and enhancement in paper along with change in duration of
Teacher Education Programme from one year to two year.
Merit- It helps to enrich the knowledge of teacher internee in various
dimensions related to teacher education.
Limitation- This resulted in additional burden of curriculum, hegemony of
knowledge, repetition of content. Course content has also been dominated by
sociology due to more people specialist from that area and lack of content from
technology, microskills of teaching etc.

8. Internship- There is provision of Internship of 20 weeks divided into
2+2+16 year sequentially in 1
st
, 2
nd
and 3
rd
semester of B.Ed. programme.
Previously it was of very short duration.
Merit- This large duration internship helps in quality control and provide
appropriate time for practice the theory.
Limitation- Enhancement in duration of internship resulted in unappropriated
supervision due to overburden on teacher educators. This is so because duration
of programme has been increased and now they have to take classes of 1st year
students along with mentoring final years students that was not an issue in case
of internship of 1 year B.Ed. programme. Along with this, there is lack of

18. sufficient number of attached laboratory schools that is also a barrier for proper
internship practice.

9. Mentoring- There is provision of mentoring regarding that internees are
divided into few small groups and each small group of internees have to work
under mentorship of different teacher educators as allotted.
Merit- It helps to provide individualized supervision to internee.
Limitation- Supervision is inappropriate and there is no involvement of M.Ed.
students for supervising B.Ed. students.

Conclusion- The main aim of establishing these academic support structure
is to implement all the educational policies and programmes regarding promotion
of education smoothly throughout the country. Although there are various
limitations but even then benefits of these programmes cannot be ignored. In this
way, in endeavour of promotion of education all these organizations are playing
complementary roles.