District Institutes of Education and Training - Teacher Education

District Institutes of Education and Training: A Comparative Study in Three Indian States
Progress towards adoption of the second model paves the way for further refinement
of the focus of teacher development activities across the system. This study has
provided evidence that the key to this may lie in a change of emphasis. At present,
DIETs are pursuing a model of input-led programmes for improving the skills and
knowledge of teachers. Teachers – both pre- and in-service – tend to have a weak
belief in the efficacy of such training and take-up of training messages is low. This
training isolates individual teachers from school contexts, does not acknowledge
their value frameworks and practitioner understandings, and holds them responsible
for not ‘implementing training’. This model struggles further to find relevance in a
decentralising context because it is unable to engage teachers in developing a sense
of professional agency and accountability towards the learning of all children.
10.3.5 Nurturing professional accountability
The findings of this study indicate the need for exploration of the relative merits of
rooting teacher development through DIETs and their associated Resource Centres
in a school improvement approach, rather than in teacher improvement as it is at
present. This would provide a meaningful focus for teacher development as one of
many activities converging at the school around improving the quality of children’s
learning (see Fig. 10.5). This study found a focus on children’s learning to be largely
missing in teacher development through DIETs, whether during pre- or in-service
training. The evidence presented here indicates a need for much greater systemic
awareness of the need to nurture professional accountability for children’s learning.
Figure 10.5: DIET support for Whole School improvement
Childcentred
curriculum
Positive
teacher
attitudes
Enrolment
of all eligible
children
Context
sensitive
teacher
education
Reduction
in drop-outs
and repeaters
WHOLE SCHOOL
IMPROVEMENT
▲ ▲
Wellsupported
teachers
(by DIETS +
CRCs)
Parent and
community
involvement
Flexible
teaching
methods
Appropriate
teaching aids
and equipment
Source: adapted from Whole School improvement, eenet newsletter no. 7, 2003 [eenet.org.uk]
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