Education has always been a key fundamental pillar to enable development in all countries in the entire world. The development of all countries depends upon the standard of education which exists across that particular country.
Nowadays, it is an era of knowledge based on economies, and countries who are unsuccessful in education find it hard to catch up with the developed world. It means a country’s economic and cultural future as well as its scientific and technological progress is all due to the academic standards being which are adhered and implemented by the teachers in the respective educational institutions.
As a matter of fact, teachers’ contributions are well acknowledged as founders of the nation and molder of personalities. In fact, the key player of the educational system is solely the teacher, who is considered the backbone of the entire system all over the world, and a pivot around which the whole education system revolves.
Teacher is the major implementer of all educational reforms at the grass root level. Teaching without doubt is considered as one of the very noble professions. It offers constant intellectual challenges, acknowledgement, respect in the society and above all the opportunity to mold the personalities of a big majority of youth. This qualifies teachers to be the crucial position holders in creating impact on all aspects of students’ personalities. They are the teachers who bring about positive behavioral changes in students by grooming and developing their personalities. That is why it is necessary that they should be adequately equipped with skills and abilities that would enable them to play an effective role in human development both from national and global perspectives.
The Indian Education Commission 1964-66, as observed by Sheikh M.A (1998) [1] had ranked the quality and competence of the teachers as the most important factor determining the quality of education significantly contributing to the national development. Nothing is more vital than securing a sufficient supply of high quality recruits to the teaching profession, providing them with the best possible professional preparation and creating satisfactory conditions of work in which they can be fully effective.” However, this crucial position requires great care and attention in the education and training of teachers, who develop and enable students to meet effectively the challenges of the present and future. Ascertaining the effectiveness of these training programmes requires for the analysis of teacher education programmes in the social context of every country social economic, cultural and historic factors substantially influence its nature and value.
The Concept of Teacher Education
Teacher education is a discipline and subsidiary sector of education with its distinct pre service and in service forms. It equips prospective and in service teachers with information, knowledge and pedagogical skills to help reform their attitudes and behavior to the profession of education.
The key objective is to facilitate the transfer of knowledge (cognitive, effective and psycho motor) to students and to build up their characters and personalities. In other words, teacher education refers to the policies and procedures designed to equip teachers with the knowledge, attitudes, behaviors and skills they require to perform their tasks effectively in the school and classroom. (Wikipedia, 09) [2] According to Sheikh M.A (1998), teacher education encompasses acquiring all that knowledge, skills and abilities which are relevant to the life of a “teacher as a teacher” It reshapes the attitudes, remodels the habits, and develops the personalities of teachers.
Need for Teacher Education
Teachers’ general education and professional training both require utmost care and attention, as whatever is acquired by them is transferred to their students with high multiple effects impacts. The present has witnessed and is still experiencing a fast but positively changing scenario of processes and procedures of teacher training. New evolving methods are continuously being added to the already practiced traditional pedagogical techniques. Familiarizing with these developments to the point of mastery is needed for the promotion and maintenance of good teaching learning standards. Good quality teacher education about those key elements navigates the way of the development of the education system in the forthcoming future.
Teachers are the layers of the foundations of the future generations, therefore the need to be educated with futuristic perspective, so that they can develop the personalities of their students, not only as per actual requirements but also for the years to come, accommodating the new trends from the global outlook. This is very vital as teacher is one of the key agents of change in all communities and a service provider as per needs of the future. Changes are taking place not only at national but also at international level. With every passing day, gap is narrowing and communities are coming closer to each other affecting each other’s practices of life.
Purpose of Teacher Education
The purpose of teacher education primarily is to equip prospective teachers not only with suitable aptitudes for teaching but also with appropriate skills and abilities required to make them effective and efficient professionals. Through different theoretical and practical activities, they are helped to understand not only the philosophical, psychological, and sociological basis of teaching, but also the relationship of education with the society and its values through teaching and learning processes.
The process of formal teacher education can help the prospective teachers minimize the troubles and save the students from the wastages of hit and trial. Appropriately rendered teacher education, provides ample opportunities to would be teachers to understand the nature of teaching; to envisage responsibilities of a teacher; to discover that to be a teacher is much more than learning by heart the philosophies and theories of learning; and to comprehend the practical implications of the pedagogical strategies. It is learnt that the profession of teaching is in fact facilitating the acquisition and retention of knowledge, values, skills and right attitudes for successful life that can initiate and promote positive changes in the society.
Keeping this in mind teacher education, through teacher-preparatory years focuses on the development of abilities and skills that would not only make them capable teachers but will enable them to discharge duties effectively, take initiatives, motivate students and facilitate learning. With the belief that practice makes one perfect, students during teacher education phase are given the opportunity to teach or instruct and receive constant guidance and encouragement during practical delivery, in order to strengthen good habits and to overcome the pedagogical weaknesses.
“Since teachers have the most direct, sustained contact with students and considerable control over what is taught and the climate for learning, improving teachers’ knowledge, skill and dispositions through professional development is a critical step in improving student achievement”.
King and Newman, 2000
