Only 339 slots for national contract teachers in 2023 academic year

The Royal Civil Service Commission (RCSC) has approved the slot for 407 contract teachers, of which 68 Regular Contract Teachers (RCT) are already recruited, and the remaining 339 slots for National Contract Teachers (NCT) will be recruited by dzongkhags and thromdes for the 2023 academic year, as per the BCSR selection modality.

According to an official in the Ministry of Education and Skills Development (MoESD), the 68 RCT teachers are the Paro College of Education and Samtse College of Education graduates who sat for the BCSE 2022 and scored at least 50 percent in the examination.

In earlier times, the regular and contract teachers would be hired after completing the recruitment process, like TRE in all schools by MoESD. However, this year the ministry has decentralized the recruitment process to optimize the delivery of HR services, and ensure faster and more efficient recruitment of contract teachers.

The official also shared that NCT teachers will not be handpicked or selected through recommendations or their experience in the teaching profession. The overall performance is looked into, and there is a ranking system in place. And this is the reason why those NCT teachers’ contracts were not renewed, even for those with teaching experience.

NCT teachers will have to apply themselves, as and when the vacancies are announced and dzongkhag education officials will look into the recruitment process based on the subject requirement.

A concern being stated is that schools cannot take the risk of hiring only NCT teachers even when faced with teacher shortages. Moreover, many schools prefer RCT teachers to the experienced NCT teachers because RCT teachers are trained professionals with Bachelor’s Degree in Secondary Education.

There are more than 1,200 NCT teachers in the country. In the past, a two-year contract period was given to NCT teachers, and eventually reduced to one-year contract with no guarantee for renewal.

“There may be one or two schools where NCT teachers’ contracts were renewed, but that is because of the requirement. This also depends on the subjects,” said the official.

The official assured that schools are managing to function even with the teacher shortages. For instance, NCT teachers are immediately recruited when the experienced teachers leave. “But the quality of education will be compromised,” the official added.

The teaching slots were announced according to the teacher attrition from 2022 till date. Although there are approximately 500 slots, but the slots have to be kept for the 130 B.Ed teachers graduating from the Samtse College of Education in July this year.