Bihar scraps STET, adopts CTET for recruitment of teachers for Classes 1 to 8

The Bihar School Examination Board (BSEB) on February 16 announces that it would discontinue the Bihar Teacher Eligibility Test (BTET) for the recruitment of elementary school teachers in the state. With this move, Bihar will no longer conduct a separate state-level eligibility examination for Classes 1 to 5 and Classes 6 to 8, and will now lean on the national-level eligibility exam CTET, as per a statement by the board.

The decision to do away with the state-centric teacher recruitment framework is likely to pave the way for aligning the process with the national eligibility system.

Notably, several major states including Uttar Pradesh, Telangana, Madhya Pradesh and West Bengal continue to conduct their own State Teacher Eligibility Tests (STET/TET). These state-level exams often come with specific language requirements, particularly mandating proficiency in the regional language as a qualifying criterion for appointment in government schools.