KU launches 4-year ITEP; PSAJK welcomes move

Srinagar, Feb 22: The University of Kashmir (KU) launched a four-year Integrated Teacher Education Programme (ITEP) for aspiring teachers.

According to the officials, the motive of this programme is to provide future teachers with modern and professional training.

“This is a teacher education programme which is for the students who have completed their 10+2 examinations,” an official said.

The official said that earlier students after completing their graduation would B.Ed to become eligible for teacher posts.

“But this initiative is beautiful in the sense that after completing 12th class studies, a student gets a choice to go for teaching as he or she is free to choose medical courses or some humanities courses if they are desirous to pursue. ITEP becomes a choice for them or a platform for them to decide their future in advance,” the official said. The KU will enroll the first batch of students from the current year.

“With ITEP students get an opportunity in advance that if you are ready or motivated to become a teacher then after 12th, you are trained and polished to become a future teacher if you pursue this course,” the official said.

The official said if students complete three years, they will get a three-year BA degree and if they complete 4 years, then they will get the BA-B Ed degree.

“This is a dual degree course, which is not true about the rest of the teacher education courses run in the department of education,” the official said.

President Private Schoolsí Association of J&K (PSAJK), welcomed the initiative and congratulated the University administration and the vice chancellor Prof. Nilofer Khan for taking this progressive step toward strengthening the foundation of teacher education in J&K.

“Introduction of the integrated programme is visionary and aligned with the spirit of NEP 2020. J&K has been grappling with a persistent shortage of professionally trained teachers across both government and private sectors,” Baba said.

He said the current intake capacity alone cannot bridge the widening gap between demand and supply of trained teachers in the next five years.

ìThe pace at which we are producing trained educators is far below the pace at which classrooms are expanding,î he said.

President PSJK urged the university to consider extending the integrated programme to affiliated private colleges, with strict riders of quality infrastructure, faculty standards, and instructional excellence.

ìUnless we open such facilities to credible private institutions under robust regulatory frameworks, the teacher deficit will continue to widen. Quality control and expansion must go hand in hand,î he said.

He further urged the government to earmark dedicated budgetary allocations for structured upskilling programmes for teachers up to the middle level in both private and government schools.

ìTeacher capacity building must not remain symbolic. It must be systematic, funded, and measurable,î he said.

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