End-of-term transfers hit teacher-student ratio

Aparna Banerji

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, January 12

Despite instructions from the government that no teacher would be transferred during mid-terms, except the formal lists, which were released in the months of June and July, the Education Department, in violation of the government guidelines, has been transferring teachers with impunity across government schools in the district.

Teachers argued there was no valid requirement of end-of-session transfers, which were being carried out in complete violation of the guidelines of the state government. They said the teachers had been left high and dry, especially in many of the rural schools from where a number of teachers had been transferred, leaving single teachers to grapple with the students.

A teacher in the district said, “A number of schools in the district have been left with only one teacher because the rest have been transferred. While the transfer policy should ideally be aimed at facilitating education and rendering teaching at schools effective, it is rather done haphazardly, clearly to favour teachers, who are seeking transfers.”

Another teacher said, “Around hundred of teachers were transferred from the department in the month of December alone. There is no point emptying out rural schools. The transfers are a clear violation of department’s guidelines and are aimed at facilitating the chosen ones. With months to go for exams, where is the need for the transfers.”

Schools which were cases in point where such transfers – leaving a couple or lesser teachers at a single school include – primary schools Kalyanpur (one teacher left), Haripur Khalsa (one left) and Bhaini.

Notably, the urban to rural student-teacher ratio in government schools is already skewed, with majority of the teachers in rural areas seeking transfers in to urban areas.