Bills moved to regulate teachers’ education, amend RTE

NEW DELHI - Two bills were Friday introduced in the Rajya Sabha to regulate the quality of teachers and amend the Right to Education (RTE) Act to make it mentally-disabled friendly.

The first bill will seek to clarify the stand of the National Council for Teacher Education Act, 1993, on qualification of school teachers in the teacher education system.

The provisions of the National Council for Teacher Education (Amendment) Bill 2010, once passed, shall apply to institutions and their students and teachers.

It will apply to “schools imparting pre-primary, primary, upper primary, secondary or senior secondary education and colleges providing senior secondary or intermediate education irrespective of the fact, by whatever, names they may be called”.

According to the bill, for maintaining standards of education in schools, the council may, by regulation, determine the qualification of people for being recruited as teachers in any school or college, by whatever name called, established, run, aided or recognised by the central or state government or local or other authority.

Human Resource Development Minister Kapil Sibal tabled the bill in the Rajya Sabha amid opposition protest over Indian Premier League (IPL) row involving Minister of State for External Affairs Shashi Tharoor.

According to the bill, “it is considered necessary to amend the Act to clarify that it applies to schools, school teachers, and the minimum qualifications for appointment of school teachers, so as to have uniform standards of teaching in schools in the country”.

The second bill, called the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (Amendment) Bill, 2010, seeks to provide free and compulsory education to all students, including those who suffer from autism, cerebral palsy, mental retardation etc.

It was also introduced in the Rajya Sabha.