About the Institution (DIET)
The
DIETs were envisioned in the National Policy of Education, 1986, and were created by
the Government of India, Ministry of
Human
Resource Development in the early 1990s to strengthen elementary education and support the
decentralization of
education
to
the district level, under the
Centrally Sponsored Scheme on Teacher Education.
The DIET is located
at an important level of decentralization
- the District. However, they have
remained
marginal
to
the
key activities of
the States in teacher professional development and school improvement; they are inadequately integrated into the State’s systems. The multiple tasks linked to departmental
programmes with different foci draw the DIET in different directions and produce divergent institutional goals.
Furthermore, outdated institutional structures also create expectations regarding work which are not realized or realizable, and contribute
to a sense of DIET
functionality. Administrative
tasks assigned to the DIET, although
they keep the DIET connected to the wider state machinery, take away institutional time and energy in routinised work that lack academic purpose. There is therefore a need
to reformulate the vision of this institution so that DIETs can contribute
to fulfilling the mandate
under the RTE
Act
in
matters relating to continuous teacher
professional development, school support and improvement.
Institutional Vision and Mission
The vision
for the DIETs that was articulated in the NPE 1986(modified
in
1992) was for
a strong district institution that would support pre-service
and in- service work with teachers
(clause 9.6) at the elementary education level.
(i) Provision of Pre-service In-service teacher Education Programmes.
(ii) Organizing District
level
and
State
Level Educational Researches
on issues
pertaining to enrollment,
retention, achievement, gender parity,
proficiency and Drop outs.
(iii) Facilitating
Collaborative Action
Researches to
enable practicing
teachers to address class room issues.
(iv) Scouting Innovative Practices of Primary/Upper Primary teachers
and disseminating them among
their colleagues by organizing
periodical District level Seminars
and releasing News bulletins which carry information on Innovative class room processes.
(v) Providing Resource Support to
KGBV, Model Schools etc., in Education
Sector by extending
DIET expertise in developing curriculum and supplementary
Learning Materials to adult learners
(vi) Designing and developing trainer Manuals for Anganwadi workers and for addressing Social concerns such as Crisis and Disaster Management, Gender Sensitivity, Leadership Manual for School Heads etc.
Role & Functions of DIET:
The Context, mission and roll of the DIETs and their
functions as spelt out in the programme of action (POA). These could be related as follows:
1.Training and
orientation of the following target groups.
(i) Elementary School Teachers (Both Pre
Service and In Service Education)
(ii). Headmasters,
Heads of School Complexes and officers of education departments upto mandal
level
(iii) Instructors
and supervisors of non formal and Adult Education (Induction Level and
Continuing Education) Volunteer of RBC/NRBC/NCLP/ Open Schools and other
alternating learning centers.
(iv). Members of
DBE and School Education Committees (SECs), Community Leaders, Youth and other
volunteers who wish to working as Educational activities.
(v) Resource Persons who will conduct suitable
programmes for the targets at centres other than the DIET.
2. Academic and
resource support to the elementary and alternative education systems in the
district in other ways. eg: any
(i) Extension activities and interaction with
the field
(ii) Provision of services of a
resource and learning centre for teachers and volunteers
(iii) Development of locally relevant materials teaching aids,
evaluation tools etc.,
(iv) serving as an evaluation centre for
elementary schools and programmes of RBC/NRBC/NCLP/Open Schools.
3. Action Research and experimentation to
deal with specific problems of the district in achieving the objectives in the
areas of elementary and alternative learning system.