In Telangana, teacher training is a continuous, classroom-centered process

The Hindu

2 days ago

'A good teacher builds a better harvest than a good monsoon,' goes an old saying in Telangana's villages. Students thrive not just from resources or policy, but from skilled, supported, and trusted teachers and decades of research across the globe confirm this. Yet, despite this clear connection, effective teacher training has remained an elusive goal in India's education system.
In recent years, many States have expanded their teacher training efforts. Yet, the challenge has remained: how to move beyond one-off workshops to truly empower teachers in classrooms.
Telangana set out to answer that question — by reimagining teacher development not as an event, but as a continuous, classroom-centered process. Its experience offers important insights for the rest of the country.
Teacher training a missed opportunity
A large study by the Institute for Multi-sensory Education found that high-quality teacher development can boost student achievement by 21 percentage points. Another meta-analysis across 60 studies showed that structured coaching raised instructional quality by 20 percentage points, and student scores by 7–8 points—especially in critical early literacy skills.
Yet, India's teacher training story has often been a litany of missed opportunities. A 2016 NCERT review found that most in-service trainings were one-off lectures, unconnected to teachers' real struggles. Needs assessments were sporadic, follow-up was rare, and cascade models — designed to spread training — often diluted quality by the time help reached classrooms.
Telangana was no exception. Over almost a decade, despite running large-scale training sessions, learning levels remained stubbornly low with a declining trend. While the textbooks were thoughtfully designed, teachers struggled to bring them to life in the classroom, having never been trained to transact them in their true spirit—often rushing through content without knowing if real learning was taking place.
It was clear: training teachers for a day wasn't enough. They needed to be equipped, supported, and trusted every day.
In 2022, Telangana turned the mirror inward and asked its teachers a simple but powerful question: 'What do you need?'
Their answers were poignant — and surprisingly simple.
'We have the textbooks and materials — we just don't know if we're using them the right way to actually help children learn.'
The response led to a quiet revolution.
A revamped training program
First, new easy-to-use Teacher Handbooks in Telugu, Urdu, English, and Mathematics were launched to guide lesson delivery and make textbooks transactions easier. Paired with Student Workbooks aligned to Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN) goals, this shift moved the system from rote curriculum coverage to competency-based learning, giving teachers a way to monitor student progress every day.
Next, Telangana redesigned how it trained its teachers.
In 2023, building on this momentum, over 48,000 primary teachers participated in a revamped training program. For the first time, the focus was not on abstract theory but on real challenges.
Teachers were encouraged to bring their handbooks into the training hall and refer to them throughout. Mandal-level trainers underwent in-depth orientations and received structured trainer kits with presentations, demonstration videos, and activities — shifting the format from lecture to dialogue.
For instance, instead of simply being told how to 'teach place value,' trainers walked teachers through an actual classroom demonstration: using small sticks bundled in tens to make the concept tangible for young children. Teachers practiced these techniques themselves, received feedback, and were equipped to replicate them in their own classrooms.
But the most radical change came after the workshops ended.
Continuous professional development
Instead of leaving teachers to fend for themselves, Telangana built a support system in the field. Middle management officials including the Mandal Educational Officers and the Complex Head Masters, visited classrooms, observed lessons, offered feedback, and nudged teachers toward excellence. Over one lakh classroom observations were conducted — not to police teachers, but to support them.
Despite slight hiccups in 2024 — most rightly due to long-pending systemic reforms such as teacher transfers and promotions — the State stayed the course. These reforms, while temporarily slowing down classroom support and momentum, were critical for restoring fairness and morale in the system.
And finally, in 2025, Telangana took the entire teacher development effort to the next level.
For the first time in the past decade, a five-day, statewide training was held during the summer holidays — ensuring teachers have uninterrupted time to engage deeply, reflect, and prepare before the academic year began.
The training design was rooted in evidence drawn from a large-scale sample study conducted by the SCERT in March 2025. The data revealed specific areas where students struggled and where teachers felt stuck. Every session was aligned with these findings and mirrored real classroom situations, so that teachers could connect, practice, and apply. In effect, the classroom walked into the training hall — and that made all the difference.
More importantly, every session was tied to real classroom challenges. Technology was seamlessly woven into the entire process. Pre- and post-assessments tracked what was working — and what wasn't, attendance was digitally tracked. Teachers were awarded digital completion certificates, acknowledging their effort and commitment. This structured and tech-enabled approach ensured accountability while also respecting teachers as professionals.
Today, around 78% of teachers show improvement in post-training assessments. Most importantly, teachers find themselves more confident to transact a lesson which would further have an impact on the student learning outcomes.
To complement these efforts, Telangana has been working on a blended Continuous Professional Development (CPD) platform to empower teachers to continue their learning journeys, choosing courses based on their needs — a quiet nod to respecting teachers as professionals, not passive recipients.
(Dr. IV Subba Rao is a retired IAS Officer and Senior Advisor, Central Square Foundation. Suresh Ghattamaneni is an Associate Director at Central Square Foundation)