TET Syllabus & Sample Questions 

1. A Large number of teachers are going to be recruited as part of the implementation of RTE, Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act 2009. There will be requirement for recruiting a large number of teachers across the country in a time bound manner.

2. TET will test the teachers and ensure they possess the essential aptitude and ability to teach at the primary and upper primary level.

3. TET will serve as the national standards and benchmark of teacher quality in the recruitment process.

Rationale For TET as Minimum Qualification 

The rationale for including the TET as a minimum qualification for a person to be eligible for appointment as a teacher is as under:

i. It would bring national standards and benchmark of teacher quality in the recruitment process; 

ii. It would induce teacher education institutions and students from these  institutions to further improve their performance standards; 

iii. It would send a positive signal to all stakeholders that the Government lays  special emphasis on teacher quality.

Structure and Content of TET  

All questions will be Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs), each carrying one mark, with four alternatives out of which one answer will be correct.

There will be no negative marking. 

There will be two papers of the TET. 

Paper I will be for a person who intends to be a teacher for classes I to V. Paper II will be for a person who intends to be a teacher for classes VI to VIII.

A person who intends to be a teacher either for classes I to V or for classes VI to VIII will have to appear in both papers (Paper I and Paper II).

Paper I

Paper I (for classes I to V); 

No. of MCQs - 150; 

Duration of examination: one-and-a-half hours 

Structure and Content (All Compulsory) 

(i) Child Development and Pedagogy - 30 MCQs - 30 Marks

(ii) Language I - 30 MCQs - 30 Marks

(iii) Language II - 30 MCQs - 30 Marks

(iv) Mathematics - 30 MCQs - 30 Marks

(v) Environmental Studies - 30 MCQs - 30 Marks

Nature and standard of questions

While designing and preparing the questions for Paper I, the examining body shall take the following factors into consideration:

•  The test items on Child Development and Pedagogy will focus on educational psychology of teaching and learning relevant to the age group of 6-11 years. They will focus on understanding the characteristics and needs of diverse learners, interaction with learners and the attributes and qualities of a good facilitator of learning. 

•  The Test items for Language I will focus on the proficiencies related to the medium of instruction, (as chosen from list of prescribed language options in the application form). 

•  The Language II will be from among the prescribed options other than Language I. A candidate may choose any one language from the available language options and will be required to specify the same in the application  form. 

• The test items in Language II will also focus on the elements of language, communication and comprehension abilities.

The test items in Mathematics and Environmental Studies will focus on the concepts, problem solving abilities and pedagogical understanding of the subjects. In all these subject areas, the test items shall be evenly distributed over different divisions of the syllabus of that subject prescribed for classes I-V by the appropriate Government. 

•  The questions in the tests for Paper I will be based on the topics of the prescribed syllabus of the State for classes I-V, but their difficulty standard, as well as linkages, could be upto the secondary stage.

Paper II

Paper II (for classes VI to VIII);

No. of MCQs - 150; 

Duration of examination : one-and-a-half hours 

Structure and Content

(i) Child Development & Pedagogy (compulsory) - 30 MCQs - 30 Marks

(ii) Language I (compulsory) - 30 MCQs - 30 Marks

(iii) Language II (compulsory) - 30 MCQs - 30 Marks

(iv) (a) For Mathematics and Science teacher : Mathematics and Science - 60 MCQs of 1 mark each
      (b) For Social studies teacher : Social Studies - 60 MCQs of 1 mark each
      (c) for any other teacher - either 4(a) or 4(b)

While designing and preparing the questions for Paper II, the examining body shall take the following factors into consideration: 

•  The test items on Child Development and Pedagogy will focus on educational psychology of teaching and learning, relevant to the age group 11-14 years. They will focus on understanding the characteristics, needs and psychology of diverse learners, interaction with learners and the attributes and qualities of a good facilitator of learning. 

•  The test items for Language I will focus on the proficiency related to the medium of instruction, as chosen from list of prescribed options in the application form. 

•  The Language II will be a language other than Language I. The person may choose any one language from among the available options and as in the specified list in the application form and attempt questions in the one indicated by the candidate in the application form by him. The Test items in Language II will also focus on the elements of language communication and comprehension abilities.

• The test items in Mathematics and Science, and Social Studies will focus on the concepts, problem solving abilities and pedagogical understanding of these subjects. The test items of Mathematics and Science will be of 30 marks each. The test items shall be evenly distributed over different divisions of the syllabus of that subject as prescribed for classes VI-VIII by the appropriate government. 

•  The questions in the tests for Paper II will be based on the topics of the prescribed syllabus of the State for classes VI-VIII but their difficulty standard as well as linkages could be upto the senior secondary stage. 

Bilingual Question Paper 

The question paper shall be bilingual - (i) in language(s) as decided by the appropriate Government; and (ii) English language.

Qualifying marks

A person who scores 60% or more in the TET exam will be considered as TET pass. School managements (Government, local bodies, government aided and unaided) 

(a) may consider giving concessions to persons belonging to SC/ST, OBC, differently abled persons, etc., in accordance with their extant reservation policy; (b) should give weightage to the TET scores in the recruitment process; however, qualifying the TET would not confer a right on any person for recruitment/employment as it is only one of the eligibility criteria for appointment. 

Applicability

(a) TET conducted by the Central Government shall apply to all schools referred to in sub-clause (i) of clause (a) of section 2 of the RTE Act.

(b) TET conducted by a State Government/UT with legislature shall apply to : 

(i) a school of the State Government/UT with legislature and local authority referred to in sub-clause (i) of clause (n) of section 2 of the RTE Act; and 

(ii) a school referred to in sub-clause (ii) of clause (n) of section 2 of the RTE Act in that State/UT.

A school at (i) and (ii) may also consider eligibility of a candidate who has obtained TET Certificate awarded by another State/UT with legislature. In case a State Government/UT with legislature decides not to conduct a TET, a school at (i) and (ii) in that State/UT would consider the TET conducted by the Central Government.

(c) A school referred to in sub-clause (iv) of clause (n) of section 2 of the RTE Act may exercise the option of considering either the TET conducted by the Central Government or the TET conducted by the State Government/UT with legislature. 

Frequency of conduct of TET and validity period of TET certificate 

The appropriate Government should conduct a TET at least once every year. The Validity Period of TET qualifying certificate for appointment will be decided by the appropriate Government subject to a maximum of seven years for all categories. But there will be no restriction on the number of attempts a person can take for acquiring a TET Certificate. A person who has qualified TET may also appear again for improving his/her score. 

Procedure for conduct of the Test 12 The examining body shall formulate a detailed procedure and lay down instructions for conduct of the TET. Candidates should be informed that a very serious view will be taken of any malpractice or impersonation.

Legal Disputes 

All legal disputes with regard to conduct of TET shall be subject to the jurisdiction of the appropriate Government.

Award of TET Certificate

The appropriate Government conducting the Test shall award a TET Certificate to all successful candidates. The certificate should contain the name and address of the candidate, date of birth, Registration No. year/month of award of Certificate, marks obtained in each Paper, class level of its validity (Class I to V, class VI to VIII or both), and, in case of classes VI to VIII, the subject area (Science and Mathematics, Social Studies, etc.). The certificate may be electronically generated with adequate security features. Appropriate may consider utilizing the services of specialized agencies for issuing de-materialized (demat) TET certificates as a security feature to avoid any kind of malpractice.

Monitoring

Following measures would be taken for monitoring the quality and administration of the TET:
(a) The appropriate Government shall appoint a Nodal Officer for thepurpose of TET. (b) The NCTE would organize meetings of the Nodal Officers at least onceevery year. (c) Every appropriate will forward a report of each TET to the NCTE in aformat to be prescribed by the NCTE. (d) The NCTE shall maintain data base and be the repository of experts and resources, including the technological tools for conduct of the TET, and shall share it with the appropriate Government.