Unlike any other profession, teaching demands continuous learning and adaptability to newer and changing times. Dynamic in nature, a holistic educational environment requires teachers who are committed to adapting and adjusting to new challenges.
At a time, when digital learning is making its way fast into the realm of learning and education and there’s a heightened awareness of events and issues arising from politics, society, culture, mental health, technology, online and social media, and so on, traditional teaching methods may only partially engage students or address their diverse needs.
Today, training is not limited to students only but as well as teachers in such evolving times. Recognising the importance of teachers’ training, the National Education Policy 2020, for the first time acknowledged that teachers must regularly update their skills to stay abreast of the evolving educational landscape. To support this, the NEP even mandates that every teacher must complete at least 50 hours of training annually through various regional, local and national workshops, and highlights the necessity of incorporating technology into teacher training.
Why teachers should be continuously trained?
Teaching, like any profession, demands regular skill development as time evolves. Given that teachers play a vital role in guiding students towards their future careers, we should prioritise them for continuous training and skill enhancement. Training school teachers regularly through teacher training programmes is crucial to ensuring that our education system meets the needs of the students and children from the current generation to aid their overall development.
In a small instance, to understand why regularly training school teachers is a must, we must look back at how the extended COVID-19 shutdowns impacted education. Following the pandemic, the widening digital divide, and remote learning has created substantial challenges for both students and teachers. Many students from disadvantaged backgrounds lost access to learning resources, and teachers have since then struggled to revert to traditional in-person methods. Such issues require immediate attention due to their potential short-term and long-term effects.
In these circumstances, teachers become crucial components in helping students recover lost learning, making it imperative to focus on their training to keep at par with the education system.
What is a teacher training programme?
A teacher training programme is designed to provide educators with the latest techniques and modern pedagogical strategies which enable them to connect with, manage and teach their students more effectively. These programs, when well-executed, can significantly enhance teachers’ ability to positively influence students both academically and beyond.
The role of teachers in general education has evolved significantly, shifting from excluding students with individual needs to including them in regular classrooms. Hence, it must be noted that teacher training is closely related to addressing diverse student needs within a single classroom, ensuring that educators possess the necessary knowledge and skills to effectively meet these needs.
For another instance, empowering marginalised students through inclusive education begins with effective teacher training. This inclusive education, through the right teacher training, can help build awareness and sensitivity where can recognise and address their own biases, creating a safe, inclusive, and discrimination-free classroom. They can create and foster strong collaboration and open communication to address issues early on.
Benefits of teachers’ training programme
- Enhanced Teaching Quality: Teacher training programmes significantly improve educational quality by equipping educators with advanced teaching techniques and methodologies. These programs help teachers become more effective in their instruction, enhancing student engagement and learning outcomes. By learning innovative teaching practices, teachers can create a more dynamic and interactive classroom environment.
- Integration of Technology: As schools increasingly adopt digital tools and smart technologies, teacher training is essential for helping educators effectively use these resources. Training ensures that teachers can integrate technology into their lessons, which is crucial for modern education. Familiarity with educational technology enables teachers to enhance their teaching methods and provide a more engaging learning experience for students.
- Improved Classroom Management: Effective training prepares teachers to handle classroom dynamics and challenges more adeptly. This includes managing student behaviour, fostering a positive learning environment, aiding students with special needs, and ensuring active student participation. Good classroom management is essential for maintaining an effective learning atmosphere.
- Ongoing Professional Development: Continuous teacher training provides educators with up-to-date knowledge of the latest educational trends and research. This ongoing professional development helps teachers remain aware of new pedagogical approaches and practices.
- Better Student Outcomes: Ultimately, well-trained teachers contribute to improved student performance. By applying best practices learned through training, educators can help students achieve better academic results and overall success.
How teacher training be effective?
Studies show that there is a clear connection between teacher training, teaching methods, and students’ academic achievements – indicating how continuous teacher training receives better responses from the students as compared to untrained teachers. A research in 2019 (Nzarirwehi et al. (2019)) compared the academic performance of students taught by trained versus untrained teachers, revealing that students of trained teachers achieved higher academic results. Similarly, a 2017 study (Behroz-Sarcheshmeh et al. (2017)) found that students’ academic achievement and interest improved when trained teachers applied teaching methods suited to the classroom environment and situations.
Teacher training in fostering education among marginalised communities
When it comes to acting upon the importance of teacher training, Smile Foundation aims to improve STEM education for students from marginalised and underserved communities through creative learning programs in collaboration with corporations, educational institutions and community organizations.
Smile’s Teacher Training & STEM initiatives focus on making classrooms more interactive and dynamic, emphasizing inquiry-based and activity-based learning, classroom management, child pedagogy, experiential learning in math and science, and effective lesson planning.
Smile Foundation training teachers regularly
Smile Foundation’s education programme takes a comprehensive approach to empower teachers and enhance education in underserved communities, recognising that well-trained teachers are pivotal to fostering quality education. Smile’s Teacher Training & STEM initiatives focus on making classrooms more interactive and dynamic, emphasising inquiry-based and activity-based learning, classroom management, child pedagogy, experiential learning in math and science and effective lesson planning.
By partnering with corporations, educational institutions and community organisations, we have been able to implement creative learning programmes that improve STEM education for students from marginalised backgrounds. Through these initiatives, teachers gain access to the latest techniques and modern pedagogical strategies that allow them to connect with, manage and teach their students more effectively. This approach not only improves the overall quality of education but also ensures that children receive the support they need to thrive academically and beyond, creating a more inclusive and equitable learning environment for all.