Preparing Teachers for Inclusive Classroom Challenges: Strategies and Innovations

Overview

Inclusive education is gaining prominence in teacher education with the significance of diversity acknowledged by society. To prepare preservice teachers for the challenge of inclusive classrooms and appropriate intervention strategies, the project intends to adopt scenario-based learning to expose preservice teachers to realistic and contextual classroom simulations. Specifically, the speaker's team produces multiple animated videos to create inclusive-related scenarios. Learners are engaged in learning activities where they encounter 8 scenarios that simulate real-life inclusive classroom situations, organised into a four-module program delivered through technology (e.g. VR headsets). Students rate and justify the provided response options and receive immediate feedback, as the videos are set to include possible consequences of their choices. In addition, the learning activities span 180 minutes in total to offer authentic and complex learning experiences, and consequently, will encourage preservice teachers to explore various problem-solving methods and actions in inclusive teaching practices, ultimately enhancing their teaching self-efficacy in inclusive education.