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Context

• The National Education Policy’s stated goal is to reinstate teachers as the most respected members of our society.

Evolution of Teacher Education

(a) Colonial Period

• The current style of schooling and teaching emerged during the British rule in India.
• This system focused on a behaviourist paradigm where education was concerned with preparing students to be disciplined, English-speaking clerks, to submissively execute the tasks of the British administration.
• It prepared teachers too as mechanics mainly concerned with classroom teaching.

(b) Post-independence

• There has been a slow paradigm shift in the system of teacher education in India, with the successful introduction of National Curriculum Framework (NCF)-2005, National Curriculum Framework for Teacher Education (NCFTE) 2009, and Right to Education Act (RTE), 2009.
• The Justice Verma Commission in 2012 also stressed upon the need to improve the quality of pre-service and in-service teacher education.
• In 2014, the erstwhile Ministry of Human and Resource Development (MHRD) restructured its B Ed. programme by doubling the duration of the programme to two years.
• The new teacher education curriculum, designed by the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) introduced several changes in the curriculum.

Need for reinventing Teacher Education

• In order to develop 21st-century skills like critical thinking – it is important for educators to develop skills like analysis, evaluation skills.
• There is a need to imbibe skills amongst students like communication, creativity, critical thinking and collaboration which we value as 21st-century skills.
• Students now do not rely solely on textbook information for their learning and they are far more aware.
• So, the educator here needs to go beyond the textbook.
• Educators need to command more respect by bringing in more professionalism in the way they deal with students and parents, control and manage the classroom environment.

Challenges to Teachers’ Education

• Poor training: The present system of training and recruitment is churning ill-equipped and poorly trained teachers.
• Lack of regulations: Mushrooming of colleges providing B Ed courses with no proper regulatory oversight.
• Directionlessness: Teacher Education Institutions have been working in isolation from rest of the Higher Education Institutions (HEIs).
• Non-retention of Youth: There has been no system to ensure only motivated and meritorious individuals select teaching as a profession.

Teacher Education Post NEP- 2020

• Recognising the power of teacher, NEP 2020 has put in place systemic reforms that would help teaching emerge as an attractive profession of choice for bright and talented young minds.
• It has put in place different interventions like:
• Integrated Teacher Education Programme (ITEP)
• National Professional Standards for Teachers (NPST)
• National Mission for Mentoring (NMM)
• At least 50 hours of Continuous Professional Development (CPD) for every teacher in a year
• Eligibility requirement:  The four-year Integrated Teacher Education Programme (ITEP), a dual-major holistic bachelor’s degree programme offering B.A., B.Ed/B. Sc., B. Ed., and B.Com. B.Ed, will be the minimum entry requirement for teachers.

Key features

• Multi-disciplinary approach: All stand-alone Teacher Education Institutes (TEIs) will be required to transform to multidisciplinary institutions by 2030.
• Professional Standards: The roll out of National Professional Standards for Teachers (NPST) is a continuum in teacher education so far as it would cover expectations for the role of teacher at different levels of expertise/experience at different stages of his/her career, and the competencies required for that stage.
• Mentoring:  National Mission for Mentoring (NMM) for schools will be operationalized by NCTE by creating a large pool of outstanding senior/retired faculty as potential mentors for mentees (school teachers, Principals, teacher educators, etc.)
• Focus on continuous learning:  NEP, 2020 envisages each teacher to undergo at least 50 hours of CPD per year.
• NISHHA:  NCERT has initiated the NISHTHA (National Initiative for School Heads’ and Teachers’ Holistic Advancement) integrated training programme. It is an online programme for different stages of school education– Teachers, Head Teachers/Principals, and other stakeholders in Educational Management and Administration.

Conclusion

• The multipronged approach adopted by NEP, 2020 is likely to revitalise the teacher education, allow bright students to opt for ITEP as a matter of choice rather than by chance.
• Interventions like NPST, NMM, CPD, etc. contribute to qualitative changes in teachers’ pedagogic transaction.
• Dr APJ Abdul Kalam had said “Enlightened citizenship has three components: education with value system, religion transforming into spiritual force, and creating economic prosperity through development”.
• We repose faith in our teachers to become torch-bearers for the young generation and shape India’s development and sustained progress in the right direction.

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Context

• The battle between Russia and Ukraine continues for the 22^nd day after Russia launched its offensive against its neighbor.
• Russia has put its nuclear forces on alert, calling it a special regime of combat duty; these include the Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs) that have a range of 5,000 plus and are designed to use nuclear weapons.
• While the Russian announcement might just be a deterrent as such weapons always maintain a high-level of readiness, the mention of the word ‘nuclear’ cannot be ignored.

This article analyses all aspects of this conflict including the nuclear angle.

Russia-Ukraine Conflict: A quick recap

• The Russian premier said the Russian military action aims to ensure a “demilitarization and denazification” of Ukraine.
• At the core of the current Ukraine crisis is Russia’s disapproval of the expansion of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization – NATO in its neighbourhood.
• Russia feels threatened by the rapid expansion of NATO since the late 1990s in the region.
• NATO and the former USSR were engaged in what was called the Cold War for about 45 years in the game of geostrategic one-upmanship.

Will there be a nuclear war?

• Neither country would deliberately launch a “bolt-out-of-the-blue” nuclear attack. 
• The crisis has now become a war of endurance.
• At all times, Russia and the US are assumed to keep their land-based and submarine-based nuclear missiles in high readiness.
• While they carefully select which instruments of coercion to use, they have both established “integrated deterrence” doctrines during the last decade.

Nuclear capability of Russia

• Russia has the world’s largest nuclear arsenal, with over 6,000 warheads.
• Most of those warheads were in reserve when Russia invaded Ukraine, with just roughly 1,600 deployed as land, sea, and air-based weapons, such as missiles in silos or bombs dropped by planes.
• Nuclear weapons were left on Ukrainian land when the USSR came apart at the conclusion of the Cold War, but Ukraine returned them to Russia.

US and the Nuclear Umbrella

• Without recognizing America’s role as a nuclear umbrella, the European countries cannot avert a nuclear attack with military means.
• The “umbrella” is based on the assumption that the adversaries of NATO will refrain from using nuclear weapons because of the fear of a counterattack.
• There lies a distinct psychology of deterrence with NATO’s nuclear powers.
• However, the US President is the first to decide on the use of the US nuclear weapons stored in Germany, Italy and the Netherlands.

What is the Deterrence Theory?

• A nuclear deterrent acts as a reminder of the consequences a country can face if they choose to attack another country or state.
• The ideology dates back to the Cold War and was used to prevent any nuclear aggression.
• As the US and then-Soviet Union each raced toward the creation and building of nuclear weapons, the US adopted a strategy of nuclear deterrence
• The concept of nuclear deterrence follows the rationale of the ‘first user’ principle.
• States reserve the right to use nuclear weapons in self-defense against an armed attack threatening their vital security interests.

Is Nuclear War eminent?

• In the light of legality, the use of any nuclear weapon, considering the massive impact it has on civilians, infringes international humanitarian law.
• Already there is a mass migration of people from Ukraine to Poland and some are seeking shelter in Hungary, Romania, Moldova and Slovakia.
• A prominent nuclear threat would add to the humanitarian crisis.
• However, threats of nuclear use impose intimidatory tactics on the sovereignty of a country.

Issues with Nuclear War

• Catastrophic destruction: Nuclear weapons wreak devastation and have long-term radiation effects that affect future generations.
• Environmental degradation: The radioactive fallout from nuclear processes is detrimental to environment and affects nations across borders.
• Humanitarian Crisis: The very nature of destruction emanating from the use of nuclear weapons is against the very spirit of humanity. 
• Ethical Crisis: Nuclear weapons do not discriminate between armed personals and civilians. Unleashing nuclear weapons will lead to large scale loss of innocent lives and non-combatants.
• Huge Proliferation risk: Proliferation is the risk that states that have nuclear weapons increase their weapon stockpiles or that new states become nuclear-armed to match their enemies.
• Nuclear Terrorism: Large stockpiles of nuclear weapons can be misused by terrorists or some rouge elements to compel the governments to give in to their demands.
• Domino effect resulting in Proxy Wars: There is a possibility that during times of escalating bilateral disputes, some country may use military operations covertly. Ex. Pakistan.

India’s No First Use Doctrine Minimum Credible Deterrence: Building and maintaining credible minimum deterrence. No First use: Nuclear weapons will only be used in retaliation against a nuclear attack on Indian territory or on Indian forces anywhere. Non-use against non-nuclear states: Non-use of nuclear weapons against non-nuclear-weapon states. However, in the event of a major attack against India, or Indian forces anywhere, by biological or chemical weapons, India will retain the option of retaliating with nuclear weapons. Massive Retaliation: Nuclear retaliation to a first strike will be massive and designed to inflict unacceptable damage. Nuclear Command Authority: Nuclear retaliatory attacks can only be authorized by the civilian political leadership through the Nuclear Command Authority.

Challenges posed to India

• Declining empathy for Russia: Keeping the prominence of the ongoing crisis intact, there is an emerging trend of Russia losing grounds of empathy and friendship from the international communities.
• Neutrality put to question: As a result, it creates a massive dilemma for Russia’s old friends like India to retain its neutrality when the majority of the world is unidirectional (against Russia) at this moment.
• Peer pressure on rise: India has age-old friendship with Russia. It is in true sense India’s all weather and time-tested friend.

India’s general position on nukes

• Complete Disarmament:  India has always been an ardent supporter of multilateral nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation efforts.
• Phased elimination: In 1996, India, one amongst the “Group of 21”, submitted a Programme of Action calling for “phased elimination of nuclear weapons” to the Conference of Disarmament.
• Non-discriminatory elimination: India reiterated its commitment to a Nuclear Weapons Convention calling for a verifiable and non-discriminatory elimination of all nuclear weapons.

Way Forward

• The entire world is at the confluence of confusion and complexities and an anticipation of the severity of the nuclear threat from Russia.
• Nuclear weapons – for as long as they continue to exist – should serve defensive purposes, deter aggression, and prevent war.
• Since Russian concerns are genuine, it needs to create a security environment more conducive to progress on dialogue and diplomacy.