When we think about a teacher, memories of our childhood cross our mind. We can visualize ourselves playing the role of our teachers and trying to mimic them. If you are someone who is thinking to pursue teaching as a profession, in this episode Ms. Mugdha Shetye talks on understanding Teaching as a Career. Teachers are inseparable part of an individual growing up days and have a great impact on the thinking and behavior of an individual. A teacher helps a student develop Physically, Intellectually, and Morally. The educational route to become a teacher is; one can pursue Diploma, post class 12th, any stream, one has an option of pursuing Diploma in Early Childhood Care Education, which is a one year course or else one can think of doing D.T.ED i.e. Diploma in Teachers Education, which is two years course post 10 +2 any stream. Further one can pursue Bachelors in Education which is known by the name B.Ed., though it is a bachelor’s course by the name the eligibility to enter this course is minimum Graduation in any stream, and entry to this course is purely based on the clearance of entrance exams conducted by various States and Institutes. The duration of the course is two years. Interested candidates can pursue higher qualifications like M.Ed. or if they want to teach at college or university level they can clear Entrance Exams like NET or SET conducted by UPSC. Some institutes offer integrated courses as B.A or B.Sc. B. Ed. You may have to clear relevant entrance exam for seeking admission in this course. Duration of this course is five years. To become a teacher one needs to possess certain personality traits. Apart from having good grasp on subject, one needs to have keenness to take up the responsibilities, good amount of patience’s and perseverance, most importantly good communication skills, listening skills, knowledge and passion for the subject they wish to teach, ability to build a caring relationship with students, friendliness and approachability, excellent preparation and organization skills. The job prospectus for teachers are quiet good one can seek employment in Play Schools, Nursery Schools, Primary or Elementary Schools, Secondary schools, Colleges, and Universities. One can work with Educational Research institutes, self-employments by starting Institutes or Tutorials. One can also specialize in special education and handle children who have some disabilities like vision problem, mental retardation or physically handicap children. The market is always in need of competent teachers. With the emergence of public and private schools everywhere, and the rise of private institutes and universities, the need for professors and lecturers is all-time high. Teaching is not just verbal and face to face, it has developed in to E-Learning modules an online web teaching strategies as well. Therefore job prospects are higher for those who want to take up teaching as a career. So why not thread down the lane of teaching to impact the world and create a better educated society to live in. For more information, please visit our website www.growthcentre.org or call us on the numbers mentioned below. Mumbai +91 22 25287474, +91 22 25288844, +91 96992 16857, Bengaluru +91 78296 88844