A bill on teachers’ assessment will be presented to parliament soon, said chairman of the Majlis education and research committee Mohammad-Mehdi Zahedi, at a meeting of the Supreme Cultural Revolution Council (SCRC) held recently.
Pointing to the 25,000 billion rials ($730 billion) increase in the budget of the ministry of education, sanctioned by parliament, he said: “By increasing competition among teachers, the new assessment system will motivate them to advance their careers and the recruitment process itself will be based on a candidate’s attributes,” Alef news agency reported.
The plan will help resolve part of the problems in the academic system “as it is one of the initiatives for education reforms set by the government,” the lawmaker said, pointing to the four criteria to evaluate teachers’ qualifications.
He said education, participation in school activities, number of scientific and research-based articles, and work experience in deprived areas, are the main criteria in the evaluation process, which would also be considered to hike teachers’ salary, and thus their social status.
Although all teachers would initially be considered on par (level one), their promotion is subject to acquiring qualifications set at higher standards, he said, adding: “Elevation to level two will earn them a notable salary increase.”
“The additional funds will be sanctioned by parliament and government. Moreover, as efficiency will enhance in the long-term as a result of quality improvement, following the plan execution, more funds would be made available to cover salary increments.”
Leadership
The education system requires leadership rather than management, said Minister of Education Ali-Asghar Fani, adding that in terms of an amicable work environment, “an academic leader can encourage teachers to work enthusiastically while the role of a manager would be disciplinary.”
Highlighting the importance of managers’ popularity among coworkers as a factor for improving performance, he said: “The ministry is focused on school-based policies since the education and training process occurs in schools and not the related offices or the ministry.”
Although the ministry faces financial problems, it has never ignored the quality of education. “As students are less familiar with life skills in Iran, we should have such training on the agenda to prepare them to take up future responsibilities.”
