35% to 41% maths teachers did not study the subject at undergraduate level: Report

New Delhi: About a third of mathematics teachers in schools surveyed in eight states did not study the subject at undergraduate level, pointed out the Centre of Excellence in Teacher Education (CETE) at Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) in its report “State of Teachers, Teaching and Teacher Education Report (SOTTTER)”.

The report focused on teacher availability and deployment, encompassing data from eight states across India. It revealed that 35 to 41 per cent of mathematics teachers in both government and private schools lacked a mathematics background at the undergraduate level.

While maths teacher shortages are alarming at 35 per cent, concerns extend to other subjects as well. English and regional languages follow closely, with 31 per cent and 30 per cent vacancy rates, respectively.

Around 54 per cent primary school teachers in these states do not have DEd or an appropriate professional qualification. The situation is worse in private schools.

The report titled ‘The Right Teacher for Every Child’ is based on surveys conducted in states – Maharashtra, Bihar, Assam, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Punjab, Mizoram, Telangana. The survey covers 422 schools, 3615 teachers, 422 head teachers, 68 teacher education institutions and 1,481 student teachers studying in B Ed programs and 268 teacher educators

Padma M Sarangapani, Chairperson of the CETE at TISS and lead author of the report, shared that the report also includes data from eight background research papers that used primary and secondary data including UDISE+ 2021-22, Periodic Labour Force Survey 2021-22 among all.

While the report states that only 46 per cent of teachers teaching primary classes were found to have appropriate professional qualifications across all states, it also shows that there are marked variations between different states in India.” The North Eastern States and the Himalayan States are still to ensure basic amenities are provided to teachers and students in schools,” states the report.

The report has highlighted that poor employment terms in the private sector along with irregular recruitment in the government sector affect the attractiveness of the teaching profession. While in many states, the private sector is seen employing a significant – 40 per cent – number of teachers; over 50 per cent work without any written contracts.

At a time when the government is emphasising on multidisciplinary, holistic education; the report pointed out that there is a great level of paucity of teachers for subjects such as physical education, music, and art.

The trends brought out in this report according to researchers can guide policy on the demand and supply of teachers, teacher recruitment and pre-service teacher education. WITH AGENCIES INPUTS