With an aim to provide mentoring to school teachers, the National Council of Teacher Education (NCTE) has proposed to expand its pool of mentor teachers from 60 to 1,000 and is awaiting the nod of Ministry of Education to approve the National Mission for Mentoring (NMM), so that the mission can be rolled out across the country.
In the pilot mode, up to 700 mentee teachers have registered to seek training on the NMM portal. Areas of mentoring identified by the mission include Instructional modules on Hindi and Mathematics in primary, middle and secondary sections, digital education, and socio-emotional learning, Inclusive Education including models of disability, learning, and assessment methods for special needs, Professionalism and Ethics, Classroom Management, Building 21st century skills, Interpersonal Skills, Action Research Project, Art Integrated Pedagogy, and Teacher’s Mental Health Engagement.
“Of the 60 mentor teachers who are assigned to provide mentorship in these areas, at least 30 are Padma awardees. The mission is rolled out as per the National Education Policy 2020 and it is for the first time that teachers are receiving mentorship support to augment their knowledge,” NCTE member secretary Kesang Y. Sherpa told The Hindu.
The NMM, as envisaged in para 15.11 of National Education Policy (NEP 2020), has been established to create a large pool of outstanding professionals willing to provide professional and personal support to school teachers across the country and ensure their continuous professional development.
“This program is not only enhancing the teaching abilities of the mentee teachers but also facilitating a culture of continuous learning, enabling teachers to stay updated and relevant in today’s dynamic educational landscape,” Ms. Sherpa said.
In 2021-22, after the mission found a mention in the Union Budget, the Ministry of Education approved, and the NCTE utilised ₹1.28 crore to build digital infrastructure to support the mission. In 2022-23, another ₹two crore were spent to run the mission on pilot mode. In July last year, the NCTE also drafted a National Mission for Mentoring - The Bluebook, a draft document, which it is waiting for MoE to approve. “Once approved the mission can be rolled out across the country,” an official from NCTE said.
The pilot was launched in July 2022 in selected 30 Central Schools - 15 Kendriya Vidyalayas, 10 Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas, and five CBSE schools across the country.
“In 2023-24, a budget of ₹1.56 crore has been allocated, but this allocation has not been fully utilised, and may spillover to the next financial year,” an official from NCTE said.
