British Council – Government of Maharashtra’s 10-year long partnership upskills 1.46 lakh teachers, enabling high quality education for 4.38 million students
British Council designed and delivered four distinct education development programmes in Maharashtra improving teachers’ and students’ English language proficiency British Council interventions has enabled Continuing Professional Development (CPD) for educators, building institutional capacity in the government school ecosystem Programme’s focus and impact aligned with the NEP 2020 vision of multilingual teaching in Maharashtra schools
Mumbai : British Council, the United Kingdom’s international organisation for educational opportunities and cultural relations, and the Government of Maharashtra today marked 10 years of partnership in driving successful teacher training programmes. During this period (2012-2021), the programmes successfully trained nearly 2,000 master trainers and 146,000 teachers, benefitting 4.38 million learners in the government schools.
An independent evaluation report on the programme was unveiled in the presence of Ms.Varsha Gaikwad, Hon’ble Minister of School Education, Government of Maharashtra and Dr. Jovan Ilić, Director West India, British Council in Mumbai today. The ceremony acknowledged partners including Tata Trusts, and key stakeholders who contributed to the success of these initiatives including government officials, teachers, trainers, mentors, English Subject Assistants (ESAs), State Academic Resource Persons (SARPs), and Teacher Activity Group (TAG) Coordinators.
The third-party evaluation report assesses the extent of reach and measurable impact of British Council’s work in Maharashtra over the past decade. It offers a thorough review of the British Council’s contribution to the transformation of teacher education in terms of its relevance and coherence with state’s needs and objectives, its effectiveness, efficiency, impact and potential sustainability.
The report also provides evidence-based recommendations and predictions guiding future teacher education programmes in the state, ranging from consideration of gender-related factors and opportunities for the increased adoption of technology.
Over 2012-2021, the Government of Maharashtra commissioned four distinct projects that aimed at improving English language proficiency of in-service primary and secondary school teachers, and students, across the State of Maharashtra. British Council, through their extensive knowledge of English language training and pedagogy, uniquely designed and delivered the four projects.
The 10-year long programme has helped significantly to shift the mindset from ‘training as an event’ to ‘training as process’ with a clear change in mindset around Continuing Professional Development (CPD).
Speaking at the completion ceremony, Ms. Varsha Gaikwad, Hon’ble Minister of School Education Department, Government of Maharashtra, said, “Our State Government is dedicated to improving the standard of teaching and learning for millions of students enrolled in our government schools, and we are very pleased with the impact report presented by the British Council for this agenda. Our partnerships with the British Council, such as Tejas and English for All Mumbai (EfA), have led to a significant improvement in the competency of the teachers, which has resulted in higher quality education for our students year on year. We are confident that through our continued partnership, we will equip our government schools ecosystem with highly skilled teachers, leading to improved learner outcomes and young students of the state becoming successful global citizens.”
Dr Jovan Ilić, Director West India, British Council said, “We are delighted to be a long-term partner of the Government of Maharashtra, to improve the level of English proficiency in government schools and supporting the state government’s knowledge ambitions. Teachers are at the centre of driving change and preparing students for their futures; and we are glad to have the Government of Maharashtra’s trust to upskill their biggest assets – the teachers. Through our various projects, we have strived to bring in long-term reform to support the creation of a school education system that enables sustained positive outcomes; and through teachers’ sustained development, prepares students to succeed in an increasingly competitive world of education and employment.”