In an exclusive interview with educationbiz, at the GEMS Education Conference, Lata Vaidyanathan, Director, TERI Prakriti School Gurgaon, discussed her realms of teacher training process.
What is your opinion on the current Educational scenario in India?
It is interesting that we talk about Education, we happen to refer it as an industry. Along with that, our focus shifted towards the teacher training. When we talk about Teacher training in the 21st century, I think the disruption will dictate what is to be done because we don’t even know what needs to be done. A teacher needs to think about learning to learn and thinking to think. The point is that the unpredictability of situation promises another role for the teacher and that unpredictability is the dilemma in the Education sphere.
Also, I think for education thinkers we need to see how you are going to handhold the life of a student who has his personal and emotional problems, but is also dealing with information explosion from all four sides and doesn’t know what to do with that information. So, specifically talking about teacher training I would be thinking about how to make this thinking about what he knows within the content of the curriculum in the 21st century.
When we talk about the transformation in Teacher Training today, what alterations do you think is necessary to specifically have good teachers in the industry?
Any kind of training which is limiting in itself has a framework beyond which you can feel you are unable to move. In my opinion, we need to implement transformative training and for that, everything has to be open ended. Therefore opinions need to be sort, discussions need to happen, collaborative spaces need to be created, and also have a primary understanding of a teacher which we currently lack. This will be my realm of teacher training program.
