Bengaluru: To overcome the shortage of faculty in state-run schools, the government has planned to hire 15,000 teachers. Primary Education Minister B. C. Nagesh informed that these teachers will be assigned to classes 6 to 8, with 5,000 of them being assigned solely to the Kalyana Karnataka region.
A notification on the appointment process is expected next week. So far, around 23,000 guest teachers have been hired and another 4,000 will be added soon.
According to sources, the State Government has been slow to appoint teachers, especially when the shortage was noticed when offline classes resumed. Experts have warned that the shortage will affect academics, which would be disastrous considering that students have already lost almost 18 months of schooling.
There’s also the possibility of stress as regular employees are already overburdened, having to handle the midday meal scheme and clerical work in addition to teaching classes. In certain districts, the shortage is so severe that some schools are marked as “zero schools,” as they have no permanent staff. Classes are provided by faculty from nearby schools.
According to sources, the Finance Department has now given the green light to hire more teachers.
According to the Department of Public Instruction, students who couldn’t afford private school tuition made a beeline to local government schools. Two lakh children were moved to government schools. Faculty shortages had become a serious issue for government schools as a result of this.
