Mita Mukherjee

Teachers engaged in teaching students of  I to VIII in schools affiliated with the Council for Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE) will have to participate in an integrated teacher training programme of the Centre – the National Initiative for School Heads’ and Teachers’ Holistic Advancement (NISHTHA) – for improving their “competencies”, according to a circular issued by the council to the heads of all ICSE schools on Wednesday.

The training aims to build “competencies” among all the teachers and school heads at the elementary stage” the circular said. It also aims to motivate and equip teachers to encourage and foster “critical thinking” in students.

The programme under the Centrally sponsored scheme of Samagra Shiksha covers all the recommended areas of the NEP 2020 and after completing the training teachers will understand the new policies better, Sujoy Biswas, principal of Rammohan Mission High School in Kolkata said.

“ The training will enable the schools to implement the recommendations of the NEP in a better manner,” Biswas told EducationWorld.

In view of the Covid-19 pandemic, the programme will be conducted in an online mode through the Diksha portal with the help of the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT).

“ These courses on the Diksha Platform have also been made available for autonomous organisations working under the aegis of Ministry of Education, including the Council for Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE)” the circular read.

The courses will be launched sequentially and conducted in batches, the circular said. The duration of each course will be different and there will be flexibility for the teachers to complete the course.

A set of three courses will be launched every 15 days. Each set of course will be available for 15 days, starting on day one and closing on day 15.

Each course will require a minimum 3 to 4 hours of engagement by the participants. The learning resources will include videos, learning materials, reflective and practice activities and self-assessment quiz.

An assessment will be conducted after completion of all the 18 courses, the circular said.

Also read: Belated Teacher Training Revolution in K-12 Education