Problems And Prospects of School Internship Program of D.El.Ed. Course in Dakshin Dinajpur

Abstract

The school internship program has a great significance in Elementary and Secondary Teacher Education because it guarantees the professional preparation of efficient and skillful teachers. It gives them a real chance to learn about the teaching profession in schools and the prospects for working circumstances in the real teaching profession in the future. In recent years, a school internship program has been added to many pre-service teacher education programs, increasing the amount of time student teachers spend in field placements. This school internship program is intended to serve as a transition between being a student-teacher and having full teaching responsibilities. It is usually longer than a practice teaching session. The goal of the current study was to determine the effectiveness of internship programs both prior to and following the practice teaching time. Both quantitative and qualitative methods were used in this investigation. The population consisted of all pupil-teachers and Teacher Educators Of D.El.Ed. course of Dakshin Dinajpur district. The eighty (80) Pupil-Teachers and five (05) Teacher Educators were selected as samples. This data was collected during the academic session 2023-2025. The research was conducted using a three-point Likert scale and comprehensive interviews. The results indicate that Pupil-Teachers perceive school internship programs as a genuine opportunity to enhance and develop their teaching abilities in a real elementary school environment. The insights gained from interviewing Teacher Educators suggest that the school internship program represents the most significant challenge for improving teaching skills and has a substantial effect on the learning-teaching performance of Pupil-Teachers.