The Directorate of Elementary Education (DEE) in Tamil Nadu has planned to redeploy secondary grade teachers who are now handling LKG and UKG, but possess the experience of handling classes I to VIII, to primary and middle schools again. This move comes after student strength increased in government primary and middle schools in the last two years.
The DEE has notified that counselling for secondary grade teachers in LKG and UKG sections will be conducted on February 16 at the district level. Further, the Chief Educational Officers have been asked to prepare a teachers' list for counselling.
To impart education in line with the Montessori methods of teaching, the government had deployed nearly 3,000 secondary grade teachers from primary and middle schools to the LKG and UKG sections. "At the time, teachers had opposed the deployment into the kindergarten section. However, due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, there was a movement of students from private schools to government schools in the last two years. Therefore, there is a shortage of teachers in many schools. To rectify it, the DEE planned to bring back teachers to schools again as the sections of LKG and UKG have been closed due to the pandemic," sources added.
According to the district official sources, the DEE has planned to recruit the teachers who trained in Montessori and kindergarten on a temporary basis to handle the classes for LKG and UKG kids. Tamil Nadu Teachers and School Protection Association R Ramkumar told TNIE, "As per Tamil Nadu recognised private school (Regulations) rules, only Junior Grade Elementary Teachers should handle the LKG, UKG classes. However, the primary teachers who completed a diploma in Teacher Elementary Education were deployed to pre-school education, which is a violation." He said that he welcomed the move of DEE to allow secondary grade teachers to deploy in schools again.
