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Chapter 8: Teacher Status & Education
Of all the factors which determine the quality of education and its contribution towards building a pool of human resources for the nation, the teacher is undoubtedly the most important. It is on his personal qualities and character, his educational qualifications and professional competence that the success of all educational endeavors must ultimately depend. Therefore, a study of current teacher status and education is imperative.
8.1 Current Position, Requirements & Qualifications of Teachers
A tabular presentation of the number of teachers in position, trained Vs untrained, Tibetan Vs Indian and further requirements for all school levels in all subjects gives an in depth study of this vital area. These are presented in the succeeding chapter under School Personnel.
8.2 Quality of Teachers - An opinion survey
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While the tabular presentations give us all the information and statistics on the position, requirements and education of teachers, often the quality of teachers has a subjective side to it. The DOE opinion survey 1997 -98 sheds some light on the opinion of students and administrators on teachers:
- Children had a very favorable opinion of their teachers. 65.3% of the students said that their teachers were kind and loving. Only 7.8% felt that their teachers were strict and less than one % (.03%) felt that their teachers did not care for them.
- The above opinions were further strengthened when 83.4% of the students said that their teachers correct their mistakes by advising them while less than 1 % complained that their teachers resorted to beating to correct their mistakes.
- A large majority of 67.5% of the students opined that obedience to teachers was essential, but very few students were willing to respect their teachers just because their school demanded it or because it is a tradition. An overwhelming majority of 88% of the students surveyed said that they respected their teachers because they (students) wanted to.
- Schools administrators however, were not quite as enthusiastic about the quality of teachers. Half of the school administrators who responded to the questionnaire felt that the quality of teachers in the Tibetan schools was good, while the other half felt that it was average. For future recruitment, they felt teachers of Tibetan, Science, Maths and culture and Tibetan Religious teacher should be paid special attention. At least one administrator felt that although the qualifications of teachers were improving, sincerity, dedication and hard work were lacking in some.
8.3 Teacher in service training
A large majority of the teachers (68.1%) who responded to the DOE opinion survey, 1997,had attended some form of in service. An overwhelming majority of 96.8 % opined that they found the in service courses very useful. This fact was underlined when 95.5% said that they would like to attend such courses in the future.
Happily for us, the thirst for knowledge among the teachers remain. 92.2% of the teachers said that they wanted to improve their qualifications. While many teachers understandably wanted to improve their professional teaching qualifications by getting a B.Ed or a Masters degree in the subject they teach, others said that they wanted to get an MBA, take up guidance and counseling or do a course in Mass media.
Major obstacles mentioned in furthering their qualifications were: financial constraints, age factor, family and personal problems, school rules and lack of adequate leave facilities.
8.4 School staff salary
- Teaching Staff
| Post |
Salary |
| Principal |
4,032 - 10,000 |
| Rector |
6,165 - 6,500 |
| PGTs/Headmaster (middle) |
3,434 - 6,500 |
| Headmaster (primary) |
2,091 -- 5,541 |
| TGTs |
1,400 - 5,500 |
| PTI |
1,600 - 5,500 |
| Pre- Primary Teachers |
1,252 - 4,500 |
| Primary Teachers |
1,000 - 4,500 |
| Dance & Drama Teachers |
1,600 - 4,500 |
Non Teaching Staff
| Post |
Salary |
| Accountant |
1,890 - 5,500 |
| Librarian |
2,826 - 5,500 |
| UDC |
2,836 - 4,050 |
| LDC |
2,537 - 3,134 |
| Driver |
1,939 - 3,150 |
| Warden |
2,238 - 3,135 |
| Matron |
2,238 - 3,135 |
| Peon |
1,605 - 2,890 |
Range of starting basic monthly salaries in rupees according to the 1998 DOE survey.
* does not include DA, increments and allowances.
Nearly a third (31.6%) of the teachers said that they were not satisfied with their present salary, but over 87% said that they were satisfied with their working conditions. Apart from stray cases in Bhutan and from smaller autonomous schools in India, almost all Tibetan schools in India and Nepal, enjoyed benefits like Provident Fund, Free Children's Education and Staff Quarters.
Prominent recommendations received from the teachers to improve the vital issue of teacher salary and working conditions were:
- to periodically review salaries to keep pace with inflation;
- to introduce Provident Fund;
- to provide proper quarters;
- to make efforts to raise the status of teachers.
8.5 Teaching practices and methods
Feedback from the teachers suggest that a mixture of the conventional teacher centered method of teaching and more current student centered, interactive methods are in practice in our classrooms. This can be seen from the following responses from teachers on the methods of teaching they employ.
- Conventional chalk and talk
- Lecture method
- Question-Answer method
- Demonstration method
- Group Discussions
- Project method
- Activity based methods
- Play way method
- Peer coaching method
- Audio lingual method
- Bilingual method
- An effort was made to asses the level of freedom for children to interact among themselves in the classroom, by asking teachers whether children in their classes were allowed to talk to each other when they (teachers) were not actively teaching. 85.5% of the teachers said that they did allow the children to talk.
- Another question asked teachers for innovative methods of teaching that they use and again the answers we received seemed to suggest that many teachers do use current student centered activity based methods.
- However, student responses seem to indicate the dominance of the teacher centered lecture method. An overwhelming majority of 74.1% of the students said that in class they spend most of their time listening to the teacher, while less than 10% said that they spent more time in doing some class activity.
- But more surprising than that, more children (39.5%) said that they enjoyed listening to the teacher than any of the other options given: doing some class activity, copying from the blackboard, asking questions to the teacher, memorizing and textbook question answers. 26.7% said that they enjoyed most doing some activity in class. Having said that, it should be remembered that student questionnaires were sent to only standard X upwards, and so their responses does not necessarily mean that student classroom activity in the lower classes is lacking.
- Another conclusion that can be drawn from the above responses is that while some teachers do use activity and student based methods of teaching, but that there is a lack of diffusion of these methods among the majority of other teachers who continue to use teacher centered chalk and talk methods
8.6 Teaching aids
According to the DOE survey on the above topic teachers said that they used the following teaching aids:-
- models
- charts and pictures
- Maps and Globe
- Library books, dictionaries and encyclopedia
- Newspaper clippings
- Tape - recorder
- Number rod & geometrical instruments
- Letter plates for single letters
- the Science lab
Teachers also provided the following list of teaching aids as those currently not available in the schools they teach and which would be of great help to them:
- Computers
- Overhead Projectors
- Demonstrator
- Ready made Geometrical models
- Slide projector
- Models, Relief features of volcano, earthquake etc. for Geography
- Pictures of Tibetan kings, courts, maps of Tibet
- Pictures of endangered species of Tibet, e.g. Drong, wild boar etc.
- Wood slate and bamboo pen.
- Proper science apparatus
It would be interesting to see how many or what percentage of teachers said that they do make their own teaching aids. Responses of course indicate that some of them do. Here is another list of teaching aids that the teachers themselves made.
- Revelation- device for improving spelling
- Creating teaching aids using raw materials like books, paper, wood etc.
- Using plants and surroundings (to make teaching aids)
- Using mud and flowers
- Pin hole camera
- Flash cards
- Activity Cards
- Paper Models
- Specimens
8.7 Lesson Planning & Teaching time
A vast majority of the teachers who answered our questionnaire on this topic looked upon lesson planning as a useful guide, helping them to make the lessons interesting and clear, and enhancing the confidence of the teachers.
An overwhelming majority of 91.4% of the teachers felt that the teaching time available was sufficient. The few areas where teachers felt additional time was necessary were:
- to do lesson exercises
- social studies in class X
- for Tibetan
- for science and social studies in primary classes
8.8 Teaching gifted and slow learners
There are no special accelerated teaching programs for gifted children in the Tibetan schools, nor are there special coaching facilities available for teaching slow and handicapped learners.
The responses from the school administrators suggested that in some schools slow learners are streamlined into a separate section while gifted children are given double promotions.
8.9 Class size and student teacher ration
According to the IDP II study, the over all teacher student ratio in the 85 Tibetan schools it studied in 1994 was 1:20. Although enrolment figures were available from only 55 schools, the enrolment trends suggest that current enrolment levels will not be much beyond those of 1994.
More recently, (as of December 1997) a study conducted of pre-primary, primary, middle and senior sections for all 87 schools shows the following teacher to student ratio;
| i. |
pre-primary |
1 : 14 |
| ii. |
primary |
1 : 14 |
| iii. |
middle/sec. |
1 : 49 |
| iv. |
senior. sec. |
1 : 19 |
As per the above, the present overall teacher to student ratio is 1 : 24
8.10 Computer Education
Computer education has been introduced in most of the senior secondary schools. However, it is yet to be treated as one of the main stream courses and there is no verification of competency level of computer education in the schools. In most of the schools, the student are taken to a separate computer laboratory on a weekly basis and with the help of instructors given the fundamental introductions while being given the option of practice at the same time.
8.11 Teacher Training Institutes
The quality of teachers has already been emphasized. One of the basic factors which determine teacher quality is the standard of teacher training institutes. With the switch in the medium of instruction at the Junior level, it was imperative for us to have teacher training institutes of our own. Details about the various Teacher Training Institutes established by the Tibetan community in exile have been dealt under Tibetan Institutions of Higher Education (5.7).
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