Teacher training has been increasingly emphasized to improve the educational quality of a country and it is based on factors like inheritance and preservation of ethics of society, expectations of people, policy matters, and teachers. Teacher education policies and the role of respective regulatory bodies is well defined in every country but there are many deficiencies in the training of teachers. It is happening in many of the BRICS countries also. Factors like attitude of people towards teaching profession, commercialization of educational institutions, theoretical curriculum, irrelevant pedagogy, defective methods of evaluation have made this volcano to explode now. Managers, teacher educators and student teachers are more responsible for adopting shortcut ways. Factors like lack of infrastructure, research innovations, rational recruitment policy, low salary and social status further add to the problem.
The need of this study is to find the deficiencies, as major risk factors. The study is based on authoritative inspection visit outputs of teacher education institutes in various states of India, policy documents and functionality of regulatory bodies to diagnose the problem for immediate remedial decisions.
Author : Balwant Singh
Role of Educational Leadership for Sustainable Development
Education is the strongest instrument for any development or change in the world. It is the most durable, acceptable and popular method of creating a change necessary for future development by creating willingness and self-awareness amongst people. Education geared towards sustainable development enables the individuals to gain knowledge, focused attitude, necessary skills and particular values which are essential for the formation of sustainable future (UNESCO, 2014). The foremost focus of Education for Sustainable Development is to improve the quality of life without damaging environment. In this fast-changing world, leadership is the basic element for making sustainable development through education and other factors. This paper aims to study the significance of educational leadership in promoting sustainable development, its basic principles, core competencies and approaches required for effective leadership. The study also explores the challenges faced by sustainable leadership and ways to overcome these challenges. With the help of literature review, it can be pointed out that to implement educational policies effectively, a system needs competent leaders who have multifaceted qualities. Though there are many challenges for educational leaders, visionary leaders can create sustainable education system which will in turn help in making sustainable development in the arena of economy, society, environment (Ecosystem & Biosphere), enhancing social justice and fight poverty.
Professional Development of Teachers and Future Teachers: Factors and Challenges
The article discusses the features of professional development and self-development of teachers and students of pedagogical educational institutions in Russia, India, Brazil.
Russian researchers analyze the influence of activity of future teachers in digital environment on their professional development and self-development, as well as the relationship of professional development with students’ self-determination, namely, goal setting. Empirically, the relationship between the digital activity of students of the pedagogical magistracy and the desire for professional self-development was revealed, which, in turn, depends on the severity of the goals and their orientation on obtaining a teaching profession.
The study of Indian scientists is aimed at studying the quality of life of teachers on the effectiveness of professional development. It was found that the majority of Indian teachers has a low level of professional development. Factors that negatively affect the level of professional development were identified, namely: low financial status, unfavorable family environment, physical and psychological well-being, job security. Researchers also consider reasons for professional development, including lack of time, lack of accountability for professional development activities etc.
The Brazilian study examines the features of social perceptions of teachers about teacher education and their professional development. The authors depicted social perceptions of teachers about teacher education based on four categories: planning, didactic procedures; assessment and teacher-student relationship.
The article also provides recommendations for the successful application of pedagogical practice and the creation of an environment for the teachers’ professional development, taking into account the results of all three blocks by countries participating in this study.
Teachers’ Well-Being: Overlooked Aspect of Teacher Development
Teachers are the most crucial factor in the education system and are responsible for students
’achievement, satisfaction and well-being. Thus, teacher well-being has utmost importance for the
success of education. This is the report of an exploratory study which draws on the experience of
50 secondary school teachers randomly selected from different schools of North India. Key questions
include 1) what is well- being?) 2) what are the various factors affecting teachers’ well-being? and
3) how we can enhance teachers’ well- being through professional learning activities?
The Well-being Index (WHO-5) was used to assess the level of well-being of teachers. It was found that
65 % (32) teachers scored low on this scale. Semi- structured interviews were also conducted to find
the factors affecting well-being of teachers. The study indicated that relevant factors are individual,
relational and also external. Results revealed that both the institution and the teacher are important
in maintaining and improving well-being. Teachers’ well- being is not an individual’s responsibility
only but requires that schools, society and other stakeholders of education should work together to
plan activities for improvement of teacher well-being at pre-service stage and professional learning
programs. The study also showed that initiating a continuous focus on teachers’ well-being might be
the best way to provide fertile ground for teacher’s personal and professional development.