About Us – SCERT

The State Council of Educational Research & Training, Govt. of West Bengal (SCERT, WB) under Department of School Education , Government of West Bengal, guided by promoting innovations through its practices carries out specific tasks for quality improvement in School education in West Bengal. The SCERT (WB) aims at delivering dynamic and participatory interactions between teacher educators and teachers in various stages of school education on issues ranging from planning, research, and action researches to extension and evaluation. Most of the activities that SCERT (WB) performs are innovative in their various facets.

SCERT, West Bengal: Roles & Functions

SCERT was established as a Post Graduate Research and Training Institution in terms of G.O. No. 712-Edn (CS) dated 21.05.1980 and functions under Department of School Education, GoWB as per G.O. No. 7-Edn (P) dated 25.02.1993 till date to carry out specific tasks for quality improvement of school education in West Bengal. It is neither autonomous like NCERT nor a Directorate but a constituent part of the School Education Department like its other different constituent, headed by a Director. The tasks, with which the SCERT, West Bengal has been entrusted cover the entire spectrum of school education. The specific tasks, as enumerated in the relevant Government Order, which constitutes the foundation of the SCERT, West Bengal are given below:

To arrange for the in-service and orientation of official dealing with pre-school, elementary, secondary and higher secondary education in the state.
To arrange for the in-service training of teacher educators working at all stages of education from pre-school through higher secondary.
To provide extension service to teacher training institutions at all levels in the state.
To organize programmes including correspondence-cum-contact courses for the overall professional development of teachers, teacher educators and supervisory /inspecting officers.
To co-ordinate the work of Extension Service Centres of the teacher training institutions in the State.
To produce curricula, instructional materials, text books etc. for the use of educational institutions and teachers of pre- school, elementary, secondary and higher secondary stages in the state.
To prescribe curricula and text books for the schools and teacher training institutions at the pre- school and elementary stages.
To produce instructional materials for the use of teacher educators at the secondary and higher secondary education levels.
To function as administration controlling authority for the DIETs in West Bengal.
To conduct studies and investigations on the various problems of education in general and in the training of teachers at the levels of preschool, elementary, secondary and higher secondary education.

To perform other functions as may be entrusted with to it by the Department of School Education, GoWB from time to time.

The activities of SCERT have been categorized under the following four divisions from its inception:

Division of Curriculum Development
Division of Educational Research, Evaluation and Examination Reform
Division of Training and Extension
Division of Educational Technology

Salient activities of SCERT (WB) through the last decade

In the last decade SCERT (WB) conducted a study and published “ Twenty-five years of Research in School Education- The Scenario in West Bengal “ (2006)
As a part of constantly providing research-based inputs to the Government, SCERT (WB) brought out “ Impact of Mid Day Meal Scheme in Primary schools and Shishu Shiksha Kendras in Five Districts in West Bengal – A Report” (2008)
SCERT (WB) , on being directed by the Government, took up a study and published a report titled, “Implication of a Private Tuition in West Bengal- A Report “ (2009)
A study on students’ & Teachers’ Time-on-Task in Primary schools of West Bengal was also taken up and results were published in 2012.
SCERT (WB) developed strategies and materials for improvement of classroom environment in the light of NCF, 2005 and RTE Act, 2009.
In more recent times SCERT (WB) planned programmes toward building capacity of teachers/teacher educators in statistical techniques for conducting educational surveys.