“ATTITUDE OF TET TEACHERS TOWARDS D. EL. ED. PROGRAM”

Lack of trained teachers in primary schools in the North Eastern States of India is quite alarming. The initiative undertaken by Assam State Government in this respect in the form of recruiting primary or upper primary school teachers after appearing Teachers Eligibility Test (TET) in recent years is worth mentioning. The recruited teachers are offered training such as Diploma in Elementary Education (D.El.ED.) is a bold step undertaken by Sarva Siksha Abhiyaan in collaboration with Krishna Kanta Handiqui State Open University. An attempt is made to study the reaction of TET qualified teachers towards the working environment and in-service training undergone for a period of two years through distance mode. The sample consisted of 62 numbers of teachers from Darrang District and 50 numbers of teachers from Nagaon District who are in service in different Blocks in these two districts. The result shows that the teachers working in schools are satisfied with the working condition of the school and they have adjusted themselves to the school environment. Due to lack of modern teaching materials the teachers do face certain problems in the instructional process. According to the teachers,' the books prescribed for different classes are both of easy and difficult type.Expectations of the majority of them found to become an action oriented teacher. In respect to the D. El. Ed. course, the study observed that they understood the need and importance of such program. Further, it is quite clear that, the attitude of teachers towards the D. El. Ed.the program existed at the beginning has changed compared at the end of the program. This change is noticed among the teachers which suggest that the training program is well perceived by the teachers. Working environment does matter the attitude of the teachers.