OSSTA discourages evaluation by less qualified individuals

High school teachers in Odisha have vehemently disagreed with the state government’s decision to have Cluster Resource Center Coordinators (CRCCs) oversee instruction at 5T high schools transformation (HST) institutions.
The CRCCs will be present in classes for 15-20 minutes and evaluate the teachers in accordance with the government’s directive. However, teachers claimed that because CRCCs are less qualified and higher in rank than high school teachers, they do not feel at ease passing judgement on them.

In a letter to Aswathy S., secretary of schools and mass education, the OSSTA stated that senior secondary or Group II cadre headmasters are in charge of the majority of the 5T high schools. The CRCCs who have been involved in monitoring class and observing work, on the other hand, are members of the elementary wing’s Group IV or V cadre. The letter urged the institution and mass education secretary to reconsider their decision, stating that “if they will monitor and supervise the courses in 5T high schools, it will undermine the dignity of senior secondary headmasters.”

“We have no issues with being watched while in class. But only a qualified individual should handle it. The greatest judge might not be a CRCC, who is less qualified than a secondary teacher, according to OSSTA general secretary Prakash Chandra Mohanty.

According to official sources, the CRCC has been keeping an eye on primary courses run under the Sarva Sikhya Abhiyan. The programme is now called Samagra Sikhya and covers classes up to X. As a result, they have also been monitoring higher classes by default.

“As the installation and operation of various components are essential towards smooth operation of 5T-HST schools along with proper monitoring and supervision, it is very much necessary to designate one district level sector officer for each block,” said Anupam Saha, state project director of the Odisha School Education Programme Authority. Senior officers have been requested to participate in the monitoring and supervision of 5T-HST schools.