COIMBATORE: Graduates aspiring to take up teaching profession henceforth will have to do a two-year course to obtain B Ed or M Ed as the National Council for Technical Education has decided to increase the duration from the present one year to two years. This extended duration of the course is likely to come into force from 2015-16.
The council recently came up with a new regulation called NCTE (Recognition Norms and Procedure) Regulation, 2014, which was published in the Government of India Gazette on December 1.
As per the new regulation, the BEd and MEd have been recognised as a professional course with a duration of two academic years, which can be completed in a maximum of three year from the date of admission. There shall not be more than 25 students per teacher and candidates with at least 50 per cent marks will only be eligible for admission to the programme.
Currently, BEd and MEd programmes are offered as one-year course in Tamil Nadu as well as in the other states.
If a student opts for integrated BEd-MEd programme without any option of intermediate exit, they can complete both the bachelor and masters programme in three years.
Academics say, this will adversely affect teaching aspirants and bright candidates will decline to join BEd course. “A majority of the students, who join BEd, MEd courses, are from socially and economically weaker sections of the society. If the duration of the course is increased by one more year, it will deter many bright students from taking up the profession,” said a BEd college teaching faculty member.
But, G Visvanathan, Vice Chancellor, Tamil Nadu Teachers Education University, said, “The quality of teaching education will improve by this new regulation. In one year, we cannot train a person into a good teacher. Now, we have also created new syllabus for the two-year BEd, MEd programmes, by including various components and making it more practical oriented.” TNTEU has also sought remarks from 689 BEd colleges under its control on the new regulation by December 24.
“We have to place the views before the syndicate of the university and also get state government’s approval before implementing the new regulation. Most probably, the new regulation will come into force from the 2015-16 academic year,” he added.
Though, there could be a drop in the admissions in the first couple of years, it would certainly increase in the subsequent years as teaching profession alone generated lots of jobs every year, he felt.
However, PB Prince Gajendra Babu, general secretary, State Platform for Common School System said, “Just increasing the course duration will not serve the purpose. The curriculum and syllabus of courses needs to be improved. Otherwise, it will only help private institutions collect fees for two years.”