In Punjab, even teachers need to pass a test: the government’s
Province’s solution to hiring good quality teachers is rigorous entry tests.
Province’s solution to hiring good quality teachers is rigorous entry tests.
LAHORE:
Much like their students, the teachers in Punjab spend nights cramming for tests to make it to the coveted merit list. This new system of assessing teachers is being used by the government to weed out the weak ones.
These entry tests are conducted by the National Testing Service to hire teachers for public schools across the province. The year 2014 marks the second year Punjab will be holding recruitment tests that, according to officials, make the hiring transparent and merit-based.
The idea to introduce these changes came as early as 2002 when a working group formed by the chief minister pointed out shortcomings in how teachers were recruited. They suggested making the process more automated, using customised software, using standardised application packages, giving more weight to academic qualifications in the merit-calculation formula, and setting up dedicated posts for Mathematics teachers in secondary schools.
One by one, these changes made their way into the government’s hiring policy but the idea to conduct entry tests through a testing service did not come until 2013. The government wanted to know how smart these teachers were.
School Education Department’s Mushtaq Ahmad Sial said the logic in this decision was to monitor the teachers entering the system. Sial, who overlooks teacher recruitment policies and procedures, explained that the teachers were coming from various public and private institutions which is why they felt the need to ensure they met certain standards.
Conducting tests at the first stage of recruitment was their solution. “We observed that this year the lot selected was much better than that of the previous years,” he claimed.
A fine-tuned recruitment policy may be keeping the department content, but teachers argue that if the government wants them to perform better, the policies must be holistically assessed for weaknesses. For example, they are bothered by the policy that says it is mandatory for teachers to ensure 100% enrolment and retention of students. They are similarly sceptical that the government is now not just satisfied with how many degrees a teacher has. It wants them to sit more tests to prove themselves further.
“It is encouraging to see the government trying to provide better quality educators but if their performance is bound to superficial factors that focus more on outcomes than learning, we may have achieved short-term goals but not the long term ones,” argues Rana Liaquat of the Pakistan Teachers’ Union. Why should there be another entry-level test?
The government insists, though, that additional testing helps them shortlist a large number of candidates. “It helps establish another qualitative test for candidates during recruitment besides their academic qualification,” said Sial.
The good news is that the entry test only counts for a mere 10 marks out of the total of 100 merit marks that are now used to rank eligible teachers. The most weight, 80 marks, is assigned to a teacher’s academic qualifications. (This is broken down into 15 marks for completing Matric, 20 for Intermediate, 20 for undergraduate studies and 20 for a Master’s degree. Candidates with an MPhil or PhD get an additional five marks.) You need to score at least 45% to make it to the second round.
With the results of the entry tests out, vacant posts are advertised across the districts, following which applications are invited. Merit lists are formed and candidates are called in for interviews (that give the final five marks of the teacher’s overall ranking), and their documents are verified. Another merit list of final candidates is drawn up and they are given induction training for a month at the Directorate of Staff Development.
Once selected, the government has pay scales to determine which grades the candidates will be teaching. For example, the primary school teachers are hired at grade BPS-9, while secondary schools get teachers of BPS-16. If a teacher is applying for a specific subject, they sit specialised tests.
Teacher contracts
The SED annually revises a teacher’s contract for a period extending up to three years. After this wraps up, teachers are re-evaluated. They are then either given permanent jobs (or in government-speak ‘regularised’) or given an extension in their contract to complete their professional qualification, which may be necessary for the post they hold.
“Very few teachers are let go,” said the education department’s Sial. “And that is because we induct competent teachers to begin with.” The Punjab Teachers’ Union agrees.
According to the SED figures, around 110,000 contractual teachers were made permanent in 2012. The department does not have the exact figures for the number of contractual and permanent teachers working at the moment but the union says it ranges from 70,000 to 100,000.
Salaries
The teacher salaries are determined by the National Pay Scales. During their time on contract, which is roughly three years, they receive social security benefits equal to 30% of their pay. This continues until the teachers are made permanent and eligible for a pension.
“Teachers are often provided a grace period after the culmination of the three-year contractual time to allow them to complete their professional qualifications,” explained Sial. This period is provided in the form of an extension in the contract.
(With editing by Hira Siddiqui)
Published in The Express Tribune, March 5th, 2015.
Much like their students, the teachers in Punjab spend nights cramming for tests to make it to the coveted merit list. This new system of assessing teachers is being used by the government to weed out the weak ones.
These entry tests are conducted by the National Testing Service to hire teachers for public schools across the province. The year 2014 marks the second year Punjab will be holding recruitment tests that, according to officials, make the hiring transparent and merit-based.
The idea to introduce these changes came as early as 2002 when a working group formed by the chief minister pointed out shortcomings in how teachers were recruited. They suggested making the process more automated, using customised software, using standardised application packages, giving more weight to academic qualifications in the merit-calculation formula, and setting up dedicated posts for Mathematics teachers in secondary schools.
One by one, these changes made their way into the government’s hiring policy but the idea to conduct entry tests through a testing service did not come until 2013. The government wanted to know how smart these teachers were.
School Education Department’s Mushtaq Ahmad Sial said the logic in this decision was to monitor the teachers entering the system. Sial, who overlooks teacher recruitment policies and procedures, explained that the teachers were coming from various public and private institutions which is why they felt the need to ensure they met certain standards.
Conducting tests at the first stage of recruitment was their solution. “We observed that this year the lot selected was much better than that of the previous years,” he claimed.
A fine-tuned recruitment policy may be keeping the department content, but teachers argue that if the government wants them to perform better, the policies must be holistically assessed for weaknesses. For example, they are bothered by the policy that says it is mandatory for teachers to ensure 100% enrolment and retention of students. They are similarly sceptical that the government is now not just satisfied with how many degrees a teacher has. It wants them to sit more tests to prove themselves further.
“It is encouraging to see the government trying to provide better quality educators but if their performance is bound to superficial factors that focus more on outcomes than learning, we may have achieved short-term goals but not the long term ones,” argues Rana Liaquat of the Pakistan Teachers’ Union. Why should there be another entry-level test?
The government insists, though, that additional testing helps them shortlist a large number of candidates. “It helps establish another qualitative test for candidates during recruitment besides their academic qualification,” said Sial.
The good news is that the entry test only counts for a mere 10 marks out of the total of 100 merit marks that are now used to rank eligible teachers. The most weight, 80 marks, is assigned to a teacher’s academic qualifications. (This is broken down into 15 marks for completing Matric, 20 for Intermediate, 20 for undergraduate studies and 20 for a Master’s degree. Candidates with an MPhil or PhD get an additional five marks.) You need to score at least 45% to make it to the second round.
With the results of the entry tests out, vacant posts are advertised across the districts, following which applications are invited. Merit lists are formed and candidates are called in for interviews (that give the final five marks of the teacher’s overall ranking), and their documents are verified. Another merit list of final candidates is drawn up and they are given induction training for a month at the Directorate of Staff Development.
Once selected, the government has pay scales to determine which grades the candidates will be teaching. For example, the primary school teachers are hired at grade BPS-9, while secondary schools get teachers of BPS-16. If a teacher is applying for a specific subject, they sit specialised tests.
Teacher contracts
The SED annually revises a teacher’s contract for a period extending up to three years. After this wraps up, teachers are re-evaluated. They are then either given permanent jobs (or in government-speak ‘regularised’) or given an extension in their contract to complete their professional qualification, which may be necessary for the post they hold.
“Very few teachers are let go,” said the education department’s Sial. “And that is because we induct competent teachers to begin with.” The Punjab Teachers’ Union agrees.
According to the SED figures, around 110,000 contractual teachers were made permanent in 2012. The department does not have the exact figures for the number of contractual and permanent teachers working at the moment but the union says it ranges from 70,000 to 100,000.
Salaries
The teacher salaries are determined by the National Pay Scales. During their time on contract, which is roughly three years, they receive social security benefits equal to 30% of their pay. This continues until the teachers are made permanent and eligible for a pension.
“Teachers are often provided a grace period after the culmination of the three-year contractual time to allow them to complete their professional qualifications,” explained Sial. This period is provided in the form of an extension in the contract.
(With editing by Hira Siddiqui)
Published in The Express Tribune, March 5th, 2015.