Teaching is just another way to pay the bills

Updated on: Wednesday, December 28, 2011

For months, R N Podar School in Santa Cruz could not find the replacement for a chemistry teacher who took a transfer to Chennai. The school was then forced to go for a rather unconventional solution. It started virtual classrooms for the subject.

“The teacher took lessons from Chennai through a social networking website,” said principal Avnita Bir. “Though we have found a replacement, the teacher in Chennai continues to be on our rolls. She takes lessons on an ad-hoc basis and the students prefer it that way.”

Ask any principal about his primary concern and most likely the answer will be a dearth of good teachers. Principals say that in recent years they have noticed a steady deterioration in the quality of candidates applying for teachers’ posts in schools. They are concerned that the profession, rather a calling, is losing its lustre.

“Teaching was considered a noble pursuit. But now attitudes have changed towards this field. Teaching is the last option for the youth. Most of those who come to it do so after losing out in the race to the threshold of other careers,” said Fr Francis Swamy, principal, Holy Family School, Andheri (East).

His counterpart from Bombay Cambridge School, Andheri (East), said the options available to principals were narrower than ever. “A mathematician will prefer to join industry, rather than a school. We have started allowing teachers who are willing to continue to teach even after retirement. We rehire them as consultants or call them part-timers,” said Savita, who goes by one name.

Sixty per cent of teachers in Savita’s school are seniors in the profession, many nearing retirement. “We have devised a strategy to fill the gaps. When a teacher nears retirement, we start grooming a junior teacher to promote him or her,” she said. “Timely promotions are also a way to retain teachers.”

Fr Francis Swamy feels teachers are still the most prized possessions of schools. “But people are losing the passion for teaching. Many heads of BEd and DEd courses are complaining about the poor quality of those they train,” he said.

Some principals say teacher training programmes are also to blame for the quality of teaching going down over the years. “Most training courses have not been upgraded for a long time. Teachers still use the same old methods of instruction because that is what they are taught,” said Rekha Shahani, principal, Kamla High School, Khar. “Children today are smart. Just to keep pace with them, teachers need to retrain themselves.”

Nevertheless, there are exceptions to the rule. Fed up with the rat race, some are abandoning corporate careers for the peace of the classroom. “We have an MBA who teaches our children and he brings a lot of professionalism to his work. His teaching techniques too are interesting,” said Natasha Mehta, principal, Euro School, Navi Mumbai. “Students like the difference professionals like him make.”

Teaching is just another way to pay the bills

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