Teaching has been such a noble profession that it has held a different place of pride in the Indian social milieu and ethos. Be it Dr. Radhakrishnan, Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam, or even the teachers who’ve been catalyzing the learning process of children – all are held in high esteem by the pupils of our society. Under the broad umbrella of teaching there are several subdivided areas of specializations, each of which requires a separate set of skills and a distinguished method of training. Some of these areas of specializations include Teaching at nursery level, middle schools and high schools, colleges, and universities, or schools for special children.
Teachers are coaches or mentors who guide the youth. They take the onus of enhancing the student’s growth. Be it counselors who help in personal and life management skills or those who initially teach students to communicate – every bit of it is associated with this profession. The teaching profession not only includes imparting knowledge, but also being in a continuous learning process and interaction with budding talented young minds.
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Scope of Teaching in India
With India progressing educationally and the Right to Education Act becoming an integral part of the constitution, education has become compulsory for everyone at the initial level. This causes the demand for teachers in this country to increase with each passing day. One can choose to teach in playschools, nursery schools, elementary schools, secondary level, college or universities, educational research institutions, government-run educational institutions, special schools for children with disabilities, or even open a tutorial institution by themselves.
The youth bulge of India is presently the highest in the world, causing millions of students to be enrolled in educational institutions. This provides huge opportunities for teaching aspirants who can choose to work in an educational institute based on their skills and interest. The scope of teaching as a career option is ever growing in a country like India as more teachers are required to guide and build competent pupils who’ll be the pillars of our society and the future of the country.
Educational Requirement to Become Teacher in India
- In order to teach in a school at the secondary and higher secondary level (class 5 to class 12) a Bachelors’s in Education (B.Ed.) is an absolute imperative. After completing graduation or after their Masters one can pursue this course if they have passed with 50% marks. If one completes graduation and undertakes the course, one can teach till class 10 while someone undertaking the course after Masters can teach students at their plus two-level (classes 11-12).
- To add on to one’s qualification, one can do a Masters in Education (M.Ed.) thereafter. M.Ed. is required to elevate one’s possibility of promotion or getting the opportunity to teach a higher grade.
- If one wants to specialize as a nursery teacher one must pursue the special nursery teacher’s training available at several universities.
- Basic Training Certificate (BTC), Diploma in Education (D.Ed.) and Teacher Training Certificate (TTC) are other teaching courses one needs to pursue in order to teach students at primary school (class 1 to class 4).
- If one wants to be a physical education teacher then one has to obtain a diploma or certificate from any sports institution situated around the country.
- One can take the Central Teacher Eligibility Test (CTET) conducted by CBSE to be selected as a teacher for class 1 to class 8 in government institutes, state schools, and unaided private institutions that give weightage to CTET scores.
- College and University teaching require different specialization altogether. After finishing one’s Masters in a particular subject one can become a specialist by pursuing M.Phil. or Ph.D. If one wants to be a lecturer in government or government-aided colleges then one needs to clear the National Eligibility Test (NET) conducted by the University Grants Commission (UGC).
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Skills Required to Become A Teacher
One common myth about teaching is that it doesn’t require a lot of hard work. People say that one needs to have an in-depth knowledge of one’s subject and have the skill to make it easier for the students to understand. But there’s a lot more to this.
A teacher needs to have great interactive skills. To be a good teacher making the class interact and communicate with you while discussing a topic is essential. Apart from that one needs to have patience. Every student is different and teachers need to deal with every student patiently and handle situations with grace to set examples for the students. Confidence and a liking towards children are really important for one to think of teaching as a career. Teachers must have the capability to be organized to teach their students to follow the same. They should be friendly, easy to approach, and helpful and should constantly find methods to make boring and difficult subjects interesting for all the students.
The fundamental skills of holding attention of the young minds, the ability to set examples through words and actions, and being able to guide one’s pupils are necessary. Teachers should always be keen to learn from their students while imparting the knowledge that they have acquired or possess.
Career Options in Teaching Industry
Teaching as a career has several opportunities and the job prospects are really high. One can choose to be a school teacher or a college professor. Work timings are often comfortable allowing teachers in schools to work from 8 am to 3 pm and college professors to work till 5 pm. One can choose to be a nursery school teacher, a primary school teacher, a secondary and higher secondary level teacher or professors in colleges and universities. The opportunities are vast in accordance with one’s specialized field of interest. One can run tutorial institutions parallelly along with their daily work in schools or colleges and earn a handsome amount too.
As the number of schools and colleges is always on an increase in the country and more and more people are paying attention to their children’s education, the role of teachers is also intensifying. This in turn is enhancing the prospects of jobs for the teachers.
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Salary Do Teachers Earn in India
The pay package is sufficient in government and government-aided educational institutions. The salary for teachers in primary schools ranges from Rs. 20K to Rs. 25K per month depending on the class that one teaches. The central government institutes also offer additional perquisites like medical allowances and house rent allowances. Whereas private schools provide a higher pay package of more than Rs.30K per month but no other incentives. According to PayScale the average salary that a high school teacher in the country should get at the beginner level is around Rs.2.45 LPA and for experienced teachers who teach students of high school, receive an average salary of Rs. 4.71 LPA. Some schools provide benefits like accommodation, gratuity, and even skill up-gradation training. Teachers can earn beyond their school or college work by providing tuition as well. With an increase in privatization of educational institutions, the salary of teachers is expected to increase further.
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Conclusion:
The teaching profession is a highly specialized field and brings in a lot of satisfaction associated with the work. It provides great opportunities for those who love learning and sharing their knowledge. There are benefits as working hours are not too long and one can engage in their personal domestic chores too, and hence is a career that women prefer a lot.
