The Himachal Pradesh education department is taking action against teachers in schools with poor performance in the Class 10 board exams. Show cause notices will be served to teachers in schools where the pass percentage is less than 25%, officials announced on Tuesday. This decision comes after an analysis of the results revealed that 116 schools out of those affiliated with the HP Board of School Education had a pass percentage below 25%, with 30 schools registering a zero percent pass rate.
The education department, led by Director of Elementary Education Ashish Kohli, has identified the teachers responsible and will begin sending notices on Tuesday. These notices seek an explanation from the teachers for the “poor results”. While the department will consider factors such as a teacher’s tenure in a school and staff shortages, teachers who have spent a significant period (nine months or more) in a particular school will be required to provide a detailed explanation for the low performance.
Kohli highlighted the department’s efforts to address the issue, stating that “There is a provision of issuing warning and stopping increment and in the first phase, the education directorate and deputy directors are issuing show cause notice seeking explanation for poor results to teachers in schools where the pass percentage is less than 25 per cent.”
In addition to addressing the poor performance of existing teachers, the education department is also focusing on improving the preparedness of newly recruited teachers. A batch-wise recruitment process for 1,122 Junior Basic Training (JBT) and 1,027 Trained Graduate Teacher (TGT) positions will be conducted soon. Following recruitment, the department plans to conduct 15 days of induction training for these new teachers at various District Institute of Education and Training (DIET) locations. The aim of this training is to familiarize the new recruits with the syllabus and prepare them for the challenges of teaching.
The need for this induction training stems from a concern that many newly recruited teachers are not actively engaged in teaching, often working elsewhere and losing touch with their studies. The education minister has mandated the implementation of this training to address this issue and improve the quality of teaching.
While addressing teacher performance and recruitment is crucial, the department acknowledges other factors contributing to the poor results. These include teacher shortages, a lack of proper monitoring, and the policy of promoting every student up to class 8. The department is committed to tackling these issues to improve education outcomes in Himachal Pradesh.
