NEW DELHI: The National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) will reintroduce one-year B.Ed and M.Ed courses from the 2026-27 session. This decision reverses the 2014 rule that made both courses two years long.
The new draft rules were approved recently and will soon be open for public feedback. The two-year B.Ed and M.Ed courses will not be scrapped.
The one-year M.Ed will be a full-time course, while a two-year part-time option will be available for working professionals.
The one-year B.Ed will only be for students who have completed a four-year degree or a postgraduate course. Those with a three-year graduation will still need to complete the two-year B.Ed.
Explaining the change, NCTE Chairman Pankaj Arora said,ย โThe two-year M.Ed programme, which began in 2015, has not helped in promoting teacher education or the discipline of teaching among young learners. In many institutions, seats were going vacant and the curriculum was not improved in the way that it should have been. In addition to a research component, the M.Ed course will have a field-work component and a community engagement component.โ
He further added,ย โThe one-year B.Ed and M.Ed courses were the main programs of teacher education till 2014. This is a revival of these programmes in the light of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. With the NEP, the University Grants Commission (UGC) came out with the National Higher Education Qualifications Framework. In this, at level 6.5, there can be a one-year Masters degree. Our students will be at level 6.5 after a four-year ITEP (Integrated Teacher Education Programme) or four years of a bachelorโs degree and one year of B.Ed.โ
ITEP started in 2023-24 in some colleges. From 2025-26, it will be a regular course, and more institutions can offer it. Special ITEP courses in Yoga, Physical Education, Sanskrit, and Art Education will also be introduced.
Arora also said,ย โAfter class 12, if somebody decides they want to be a school teacher, thereโs ITEP. If they decide after three years of graduation, then there is the option of a two-year B.Ed. After post graduation or a four-year graduation course, a one-year B.Ed is being offered. These three programmes are for different populations altogetherโฆanybody, at any stage, who is willing to come into teaching, should be given an appropriate programme. These programmes will also have four specialisations as per the new school education structure under the NEP โ foundational, preparatory, middle and secondary school levels.โ
Students and educators have shared their reactions to this decision.
Gurleen Kaur Virk, a first-year B.Ed student at Doon Valley College, Kurukshetra University, welcomed the move. She said,ย โItโs a good initiative by the regulatory body. Specifically for primary school teachers who have just done a bachelorโs degree, a two-year B.Ed is fine. But for TGT teachers who have a masterโs degree, a one-year B.Ed makes sense.โ
Manvi Verma, a former teacher and home tutor, who is currently pursuing a PhD, supported the change but stressed the need for quality.ย โAccording to me, it is beneficial only if the quality of education is not compromised. Reducing the time period from two years to one might make people doubt the education quality. If that doesnโt happen, then itโs great, and I am in support,โย she said.
With multiple pathways now available, aspiring teachers will have more options to enter the profession at different stages of their academic journey.
