B.Ed. qualification for primary teacher post
Eligibility of B.Ed. degree holders eligible for primary teacher post
Far-reaching consequences of Judgment dated 11.8.2023 of the Supreme Court of India.
On 28.6.2018, the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) issued the notification under Section 23(1) of the Right to Education Act, 2009 and made B.Ed. degree holders eligible for the post of primary teacher as per the direction dated 30.5.2018 of the Central Government.
However, the State of Rajasthan excluded the B.Ed. degree holders from the eligibility while issuing the advertisement dated 11.1.2021 for the Rajasthan Teacher Eligibility Test.
This was challenged in the High Court of Rajasthan. Similarly, the writ petitions challenging the notification dated 28.6.2018 of NCTE were also filed by D.Ed. holders.
The High Court had quashed the notification dated 28.6.2018.
HELD, on detailed analysis of the provisions of NCTE and the earlier decisions, it was held that B.Ed. course is not designed for teaching at primary level. The Diploma in Elementary Education (D.Ed.) is the property qualification in primary schools. From 2010 till the notification 26.8.2018 the consistent policy of NCTE was to exclude B.Ed. candidates from the post of primary teacher. The decision to include or exclude B.Ed. qualification for primary teachers is academic decision and should be left to the expert body of NCTE rather than by the Central Government.
Victor Hugo had famously said “one who opens a school door, closes a prison”. Myron Weiner in his book on Child Labour in India links child labour to lack of effective measures in elementary education.
Devesh Sharma Vs. Union of India and others – Civil Appeal No.5068 of 2023 with connected with matters.
