Teacher Preparation for Inclusive Education- Intervention of NEP 2020

Abstract

Inclusive education is an integral part of teacher education. As NEP 2020 focuses on equitable and inclusive education, it has broadened the umbrella of inclusive education to include Children with Special Needs (CWSN) as well as the socio-economically disadvantaged, thus, aiming to achieve equity, accessibility, right to education and quality education. National Curriculum Framework for Teacher Education (2009) has highlighted the importance of teacher’s competence, skills and knowledge for learner’s achievement and quality education for inclusion. Thus, it is an increasing challenge for teachers to be trained and equipped to teach in an inclusive set up. Inclusive education in teacher education program involves many challenges that need to be addressed in order to ascertain that the teachers are equipped to accommodate students with diverse needs and create a safe and supportive environment for learning. Hence, this paper aims to review the challenges of teacher education program in implementing inclusive education. It attempts to find out the intervention of NEP 2020 in relation to Inclusive Education for addressing the challenges faced in teacher preparation. It also suggests measures for teacher preparation.