New Delhi, Sep. 5 Vice President Mohammad Hamid Ansari on Saturday said that education reform is the need of the hour, as the teachers in the country are facing professional disempowerment.

"We have a situation today in which teachers are politically empowered and professionally disempowered. This is a disservice to the cause of education. The need of the hour is to painstakingly rebuild the professional identity of our teachers, nurture their skills and professional competence through continuing education," Ansari said, while giving away National Awards to Teachers on the Birth Anniversary of former President of India Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan.

Ansari also questioned the current system of teacher recruitment, teaching methods, performance assessment, incentive and reward structure and manner of accountability.

"Far too often the focus, regrettably, is on completing the syllabus rather than on cultivating critical thinking skills and competencies. This needs to be corrected," he said on the occasion of Teacher's Day.

Ansari said the Right to Education Act passed by the Parliament "as more empowering, in terms of its impact, than the Right to Vote".

Under the Right to Education Act, the government will come up with a framework of national curriculum, develop and enforce standards for teacher training and provide technical support and resources to states for promoting innovation, research, planning and capacity.

In a departure from 51-year-old tradition, the award was not given away by the President but by the Vice President as President Pratibha Patil is on a two-nation tour Russia and Tajikistan. (ANI)