This development, according to the ministry, will instill in teachers the need to be disciplined individuals in their conduct and delivery of the instructional programmes in the classroom.
However, the ministry is concerned about a statement in a TSC release in the media on Thursday that stated “rationalization was a very sore subject in almost every region.”
According to the ministry, the process of rationalization is ongoing and it seeks to have an adequate number of qualified teachers in the classroom according to the student/teacher ratio and the subject being offered.
The ministry further pointed out that the TSC is the sole authority to appoint teaching staff to all schools not governed by boards and therefore the commission is partly responsible for the overstaffing.
In quite a few regions there were both overstaffed and understaffed schools and the process was geared to correct this problem in accordance with the Ministry of Education principle on overstaffing. In keeping with this principle many of the teachers who were transferred were acting teachers.
The ministry said also that teachers were given adequate notice of the rationalization process and the need for such an exercise, which was implemented according to the regulations.
And more recently the intention of the exercise was explained by Minister of Education Shaik Baksh during the debate on the budget estimates in the National Assembly in response to questions from the opposition benches, the release added.
