Sudha Murthy Advocates for Mandatory Teacher Training and Exams Every Three Years
Wednesday, 12 March 2025, 11:51 IST
Rajya Sabha member Sudha Murthy called for mandatory training courses and exams for teachers every three years, with more frequent assessments for Primary School Educators. Speaking during a discussion on the Ministry of Education's operations, Murthy emphasized the crucial role teacher’s play in shaping the education system, stating that without skilled teachers, educational standards cannot improve. Murthy, wife of Infosys co-founder Narayana Murthy, underscored the importance of continuous professional development for educators.
"Teachers, once they pass the exam, BA, or MA, or even PhD at a college level, they enter into the system and afterwards, there are no exams until they retire. This should not happen. Every three years, they should have a new technique or new knowledge examination should be there. Otherwise, they will not improve”, says Sudha Murty.
"Excellent school premises, all those things you can do, but if you don't have a good teacher, it is of no use. Teachers play an important role in the education system, not only by their qualification, their methodology of teaching, convincing, becoming friendly, at times strict, many times, you know, very soft. It's an art".
She noted that while there are many training sessions for teachers, there are no examinations associated with them to assess the effectiveness of the training.
"Every three years, a teacher has to appear for an examination with a different learning technology. Because technology changes. Nothing is free in life except for mother's love. Everything has a price. If you want to be a good teacher, there is a price for that. The price is not money, but good training and an examination for the teachers", Says Sudha Murty.
NCP-SCP member Fauzia Khan voiced her support for Sudha Murthy’s call for mandatory teacher training and exams every three years. She criticized the government's actions, stating there is a significant gap between its promises and its implementation. Khan pointed out that while the National Education Policy envisions spending 6 percent of GDP on education, the government's expenditure on the sector has been continuously reduced from 3.8 percent in 2015-16 to just 2.5 percent in 2025-26.
Fauzia Khan also highlighted that no clear funds have been allocated for early childhood education, and there are three lakh ungoverned schools across the country. She criticized the government's approach, noting that while there are discussions about establishing world-class educational institutions, the budget for education has been slashed by 73 percent. Meanwhile, BSP member Ramji called for regulating online education, citing concerns about children being exposed to age-inappropriate content. CPI member Sandosh Kumar P urged that Hindi should not be imposed through the National Education Policy, stressing that it is the government's responsibility to protect all languages.
"All languages are national languages. You can't find the term 'regional language' in the constitution. Malayalam is a national language. Telugu, Oriya, all languages are. Tamil also, for sure. All languages, 1 stand for all languages”, says Sandosh Kumar.
JD (U) member Sanjay Kumar Jha emphasized that language has never been a divisive issue in India, highlighting the country's culture of mutual support. CPI (M) member John Brittas, on the other hand, raised concerns about the emergency period, noting that an amendment was made to the Constitution during that time that removed education from the state list. Brittas urged the government to reverse this amendment and return control of education to the states.
"The very party who ridicules Congress on emergency actually benefits out of emergency now. They actually feast on emergency", says Brittas.
John Brittas also criticized the Centre for bearing only a partial expense on its schemes, yet branding them as entirely its own. DMK member M Thambidurai, BJD member Niranjan Bishi, and BJP member Maharaja Sanajaoba Leishemba also participated in the discussion, contributing their perspectives on the issues raised.
"Teachers, once they pass the exam, BA, or MA, or even PhD at a college level, they enter into the system and afterwards, there are no exams until they retire. This should not happen. Every three years, they should have a new technique or new knowledge examination should be there. Otherwise, they will not improve”, says Sudha Murty.
"Excellent school premises, all those things you can do, but if you don't have a good teacher, it is of no use. Teachers play an important role in the education system, not only by their qualification, their methodology of teaching, convincing, becoming friendly, at times strict, many times, you know, very soft. It's an art".
She noted that while there are many training sessions for teachers, there are no examinations associated with them to assess the effectiveness of the training.
"Every three years, a teacher has to appear for an examination with a different learning technology. Because technology changes. Nothing is free in life except for mother's love. Everything has a price. If you want to be a good teacher, there is a price for that. The price is not money, but good training and an examination for the teachers", Says Sudha Murty.
NCP-SCP member Fauzia Khan voiced her support for Sudha Murthy’s call for mandatory teacher training and exams every three years. She criticized the government's actions, stating there is a significant gap between its promises and its implementation. Khan pointed out that while the National Education Policy envisions spending 6 percent of GDP on education, the government's expenditure on the sector has been continuously reduced from 3.8 percent in 2015-16 to just 2.5 percent in 2025-26.
Fauzia Khan also highlighted that no clear funds have been allocated for early childhood education, and there are three lakh ungoverned schools across the country. She criticized the government's approach, noting that while there are discussions about establishing world-class educational institutions, the budget for education has been slashed by 73 percent. Meanwhile, BSP member Ramji called for regulating online education, citing concerns about children being exposed to age-inappropriate content. CPI member Sandosh Kumar P urged that Hindi should not be imposed through the National Education Policy, stressing that it is the government's responsibility to protect all languages.
"All languages are national languages. You can't find the term 'regional language' in the constitution. Malayalam is a national language. Telugu, Oriya, all languages are. Tamil also, for sure. All languages, 1 stand for all languages”, says Sandosh Kumar.
JD (U) member Sanjay Kumar Jha emphasized that language has never been a divisive issue in India, highlighting the country's culture of mutual support. CPI (M) member John Brittas, on the other hand, raised concerns about the emergency period, noting that an amendment was made to the Constitution during that time that removed education from the state list. Brittas urged the government to reverse this amendment and return control of education to the states.
"The very party who ridicules Congress on emergency actually benefits out of emergency now. They actually feast on emergency", says Brittas.
John Brittas also criticized the Centre for bearing only a partial expense on its schemes, yet branding them as entirely its own. DMK member M Thambidurai, BJD member Niranjan Bishi, and BJP member Maharaja Sanajaoba Leishemba also participated in the discussion, contributing their perspectives on the issues raised.
