The government’s recent order making Diploma in Language Education (DLEd) equivalent to Bachelor in Education (B Ed) has kicked up a row.
Kerala Pradesh School Teachers Union (KPSTU) on Monday asked the government to reconsider its order while the United Forum of Language Teachers welcomed it. The government on February 11 issued the order after the curriculum committee of the SCERT recommended that Diploma in Language Education (DLEd), formerly called LTTC (Language Teacher’s Traning Course), can be considered equivalent to the B Ed degree.
“If DLEd can be considered equivalent to B Ed, will the government also make various diplomas in engineering equivalent to B Tech?” asked Abdul Samad, general secretary of the KPSTU. KPSTU also asked the government to desist from the move to appoint language teachers ‘without proper qualification’ as headmasters.
“Since the headmaster’s job also includes supervision, there should not be any relaxation in the eligibility criteria,” Samad said.
Welcoming the government order, the United Forum of Language Teachers said that this would help end ‘discrimination’ faced by the language teachers over the years. “Only after passing a two-year preliminary course and a three-year Afzal Ul Ulama course after SSLC does a person get eligibility for DLEd in Arabic,” K Moideen Kutty, chairman, State Committee of United Forum of Language Teachers said.
“A person holding DLEd in Hindi has to pass a two-year Rashtra Bhasha course and a three-year Praveen course approved by the Union Ministry of HRD. One has to then clear an entrance exam to get admission to DLEd in Hindi,” he said.