PESHAWAR: The elementary and secondary education department has decided to hire teachers through parent-teacher council as stopgap arrangement to meet their shortage immediately.

Officials said that initially 1,300 teachers would be hired for the state-run primary, middle and high schools across the province.

The practice of hiring teachers on one-year contract will continue till appointment of regular teachers in the government primary, middle and high schools, according to officials of the education department.

They said that provincial government had already approved Rs400 million for appointment of such teachers. Of the total allocation, Rs200 million would be spent on hiring teachers for primary schools and Rs200 million for middle and higher schools across the province, they added.

Officials said that 725 teachers would be hired for primary schools, 373 teachers for middle schools and 142 for high schools. They said that during the planning stage of the scheme education department had forwarded a request for hiring 1,500 teachers for primary schools, however, finance department approved appointment of 725 teachers only.

Rs400 million already approved for the purpose

Similarly, the education department had requested for hiring 628 teachers for middle schools while it was allowed to hire only 373 teachers.

The director of elementary and secondary education department, Hafiz Ibrahim, told Dawn that teachers would be hired through parent-teacher council. The PTC is a school-based body consisting of parents of the enrolled students, local elders and administration of the school.

The director said that Rs20,000 salary would be paid to the teachers of primary schools, Rs25,000 to the teachers of middle schools and Rs30,000 to the teachers of high schools.

When this scribe told him that Rs20,000 salary for the primary schools teachers was less than minimum wage for the unskilled labour, he said that it was approved when the minimum wage was Rs17,500. He added that salary of the primary schoolteachers would be revised before hiring them.

The director said that the teachers would be hired from the respective union council. He added that if the required teachers were not available in the respective union council, then they would be hired from the adjacent union council.

Mr Ibrahim said that head teachers and PTC members of the relevant school would inform qualified candidates through local advertisement including announcement through loudspeaker and other sources about the recruitment process.

The PTC committee under the supervision of sub-divisional education officer (SDEO) and assistant sub divisional education officer (ASDEO) will sign agreement with the selected candidates for primary schools while additional district education officer (ADEO) will perform the task at secondary level after scrutiny of applications.

“Selection will be made on merit as per formula already applied for selection of teachers through education department at primary and secondary level,” said the director.

He said that documents and testimonials of the candidates would be verified from the relevant educational board and university as per laid down criteria.

He said that residency certificates or union council certificates and domiciles would be provided to the department by candidates before appointing in the schools.

The officials in education department told Dawn that the department would also hire 1,200 information technology teachers and heads of information technology laboratory through PTC at the 600 labs that would be completed soon at a cost of Rs2 billion in the government high and higher secondary schools in the province.

Published in Dawn, August 2nd , 2021