Editorial
Teachers for primary schools
The void needs to be filled in
Only last week, in this very column, we had expressed concern over the dropout rate in the primary schools at around 21 percent. And one does not have to look very far into why that is so. Shortage of teachers is perhaps one of the reasons why such a large percentage of primary school pupils decide to stay away for good.
It is therefore good to know that the government is planning to recruit 15000 teachers for the primary schools of the country. This, we understand, will be done in the next four months. The shortfall is indeed alarming, particularly the fact that there is at present 3000 primarily schools which are without headmasters. This in spite of the fact that the ministry has appointed over 60,000 teachers, including more than 1500 headmasters, in the last 32 months.
While the action of the ministry to appoint new teachers is laudable one wonders why the shortfall has been allowed to occur in the first place. Recruitment is a continuous process which, if followed regularly, would guarantee a steady inflow of new teachers with retirement of the old ones. We feel that there is also need for a re-look at the number of teachers authorised in a primary school, which is, as of now, four for each primary school. And given the fact that the government is planning to build 1500 more primary schools the shortfall would be higher than anticipated.
On a more practical note, we feel that the ministry should also address the issue of trained and qualified teachers. If we are looking to provide a solid foundation to the youth primary school is the best place for it, and for that we need dedicated teachers, which, given the scale of their pay, they are hardly able to be.
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