The Madras High Court ruled on 7 April 2022, that teachers who do not pass the Teachers Eligibility Test (TET) cannot continue in service.
Justice D Krishnakumar gave the ruling as he dismissed a batch of writ petitions. He directed the authorities concerned to ensure that the instructions issued by the School Education Secretary on May 2, 2019, are strictly followed.
He also added that if anyone fails to comply with the same, appropriate action shall be taken in accordance with the law.
The judge asked the authorities to ensure strict compliance with the guidelines issued by the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) in February 2021 for conducting the TET examination annually to enable the teachers to qualify for the job.
The judge noted that even though so many years have passed post the enactment of the RTE Act in 2009, the said statutory provision has not been followed. And the petitioners and other teachers are allowed to continue in service without possessing the minimum eligibility condition of passing TET.
It is mandatory for the teachers, who did not possess the minimum qualification of passing TET prior to the 2019 RTE Act, to acquire the same within nine years i.e., by March 31, 2019.
“Thus, the teachers, who do not possess the minimum qualification of TET are not entitled to continue in their services in the schools/educational institutions,” the judge said.
The court has dismissed a batch of writ petitions from K Vasudevan and eight others. They also sought a direction from the authorities concerned with regard to sanctioning an annual increment to them in a city-based school from 2012 as well as the incentive increment for having acquired a B.Sc. (Maths) without reference to the passing of TET with all consequential and other attendant benefits.
The teachers also argued that the Government has not been conducting the TET examination every year and therefore appropriate direction may be given to the State Government to instruct the Teachers Recruitment Board for conducting the TET examination every year, to enable the teachers to qualify themselves in TET.
To this, Mr. S Silambanan, Additional Advocate General stated that the Board has notified for conducting TET examinations in the month of June 2022, and teachers, who have not qualified shall participate in the ensuing examinations.
The court stated that teaching is a profession that requires knowledge and skills, and quality in teaching is the need of the hour.
Justice Krishnakumar said the main purpose of TET was to assess a candidate’s aptitude for the teaching profession that is, to assess the teachers whether or not they had adequate teaching competency and a positive attitude toward teaching.
It is necessary to ensure teachers with the essential aptitude and ability are recruited to meet the challenges of teaching and for the benefit of the students at large, the teachers should be in sync with national standards. This would ensure that despite having alternate pathways to become teachers, standards of teaching are maintained, he added.
