Issues and Challenges of Mathematics Teacher Education: An Indian Outlook

Abstract

Mathematics is considered as one of the most difficult core subjects worldwide. Mathematics Education faces a lot of challenges, many of which arises from issues in the teacher education. The quality of teacher education plays a crucial role in shaping the quality of mathematics instructions in schools. In this present educational context, teaching-learning process has undergone a paradigm shift, especially with the emergence of technology. Teaching-learning has become more student-centric and teachers’ role has become more of a facilitator. Despite ongoing reforms, several problems persist in mathematics teacher education, including inadequate subject knowledge and pedagogical skills of pre-service and in-service teachers, limited opportunities for practical training, and lack of integration of technology, which impacts their ability to deliver engaging and conceptually rich lessons. Most teacher education programmes give emphasis on theory rather than practical teaching experiences which creates a disconnect between training and real classroom situations. Furthermore, shortage of qualified mathematics teachers, especially in the rural and far-flung areas, elevates the problem, leading to larger class sizes and reduced individualized instruction. Thus, the responsibility in making of a competent mathematics teacher lies in the quality of teacher education. There arises an urgent need for updating teacher education and the whole education system by bringing in qualitative improvement of teacher education. This research study brings out the issues and challenges in teacher education with regard to mathematics education, and provides suggestive measures to address the same.