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Unit 29: Curriculum Development on in Integrated in Teacher Education Curriculum

environment is to begin with a well developed pre-service teacher education programme and Notes
continue with career long learning opportunities. Each society, therefore, makes some provision
for pre-service education and continuous professional development of teachers in order to help
them contribute in the growth of society. There is ample empirical research evidence to suggest
that students’ achievement is significantly related to the professional preparation of teachers.

29.6 Integreted Teacher Education Programme

A number of studies were conducted to examine the effectiveness of these four year integrated
programme. The key finding is that teachers that emerge from this programme are much better
than the products of the traditional one-year B.Ed programme. The difference in effectiveness is
attributed to ‘selection of meritorious students, greater length, integrated curriculum along with
simultaneous teaching of content and methods of teaching.’ In spite of a sound conceptual base,
the availability of evidence with regard to its effectiveness and experiences of developed countries
and recommendation of several expert bodies, the innovation has not been mainstreamed beyond
the confines of the four NCERT Regional Colleges of Education.
29.6.1 Four Year Integrated Programme of Secondary Teacher Education
Regional Colleges of Education, NCERT (1960)
The four year integrated programme was introduced during the 1960s in NCERT’s four Regional
Colleges of Education in Ajmer, Bhubneshwar, Mysore and Bhopal. This programme was designed
to prepare secondary school teachers in the Sciences and Humanities.
Over the thirty-five years of its existence, the scheme of studies of the programme has been
modified several times which is its most significant innovation. The curriculum was initially
designed to develop subject-based competency of the level of graduation along with professional
competencies related to methodology of teaching. To begin with, a composite degree of B.Sc.
B.Ed. was awarded to the candidates on the successful completion of the course. Subsequently a
modification was introduced to award the degree of B.Sc. on the completion of three years to
enable students to join postgraduate programmes of study in various science disciplines. This
provision however led to the exodus of several students at the end of three years. As a consequence
the original system of awarding one composite degree at the end of the entire four year programme
was reintroduced. Subsequently in 1996, the B.A. B.Ed. Arts programme was withdrawn on the
recommendations of the Abbreviated Review of NCERT. The B.Sc. B.Ed. integrated programme
in the Sciences is still continuing.
The minimum qualification for admission into this programme is senior secondary (i.e., 12 years
of schooling). The content of this integrated programme includes courses on subject knowledge
(60%), professional education (20%) and general education (20%), leading to the B.Sc. B.Ed. degree.
29.6.2 Four year Integrated Programme of Elementary Teacher Education
The B.El.Ed., Maulana Azad Centre for Elementary and Social Education (MACESE), Faculty of
Education, University of Delhi (1994): The Bachelor of Elementary Education (B.El.Ed.) is a four
year integrated professional degree programme of Elementary Teacher Education offered after
the senior secondary (Class XII or equivalent) stage of school.
The (B.El.Ed.) programme is designed to integrate the study of subject knowledge, human
development, pedagogic knowledge and self-knowledge. The main aim of the B.El.Ed. is to
prepare reflective practitioners who are socially sensitive. It is an attempt to replace an
unquestioning and meek teacher with one who can critically reflect on the ‘received’ curriculum
and ‘prescribed’ knowledge. It prepares students to move beyond mere textbook knowledge. The
B.El.Ed. students attempt to initiate their own inquiry, examine ideas in all their complexity and
deal with ambiguity. The aim is to develop in students a mental flexibility needed to critically
examine and synthesise knowledge from various sources and deal with the complex challenges
of classroom teaching. The students learn to engage with issues of subject content, reflect on
appropriate methods of assessment and attempt to evolve pedagogy in consonance with the
needs of the learner.

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