Ministry of Education notifies four-year integrated teacher education programme

Oct 27, 2021

New Delhi [India], October 27 : The Ministry of Education has notified the four-year Integrated Teacher Education Programme (ITEP), a dual-major holistic bachelor's degree offering BA B.Ed/ B.Sc B.Ed and B.Com B.Ed. which is one of the major mandates of the National Education Policy 2020 related to teacher education.
The four-year ITEP will be available for all students who choose teaching as a profession after secondary, by choice. This integrated course will benefit students since they will save one year by finishing it in four years rather than the customary five years required by the present B.Ed. plan.
The commencement of the four-year ITEP will be from the academic session 2022-23. Admission for the same will be carried out by the National Testing Agency (NTA) through the National Common Entrance Test (NCET). This course will be offered by multidisciplinary institutions and will become the minimal degree qualification for school teachers.
ITEP will not only impart cutting-edge pedagogy, but will also establish a foundation in early childhood care and education (ECCE), foundational literacy and numeracy (FLN), inclusive education, and an understanding of India and its values/ethos/art/traditions, among others.
The four-year ITEP is a milestone achievement in fulfilling one of the major mandates of National Education Policy 2020. The course will contribute substantially to the revitalisation of the whole teacher education sector.
National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) under the Ministry of Education has devised the curriculum of this course in such a way that it enables a student-teacher to get a degree in education as well as a specialised discipline such as history, mathematics, science, arts, economics, or commerce.
The prospective teachers passing out of this course through a multi-disciplinary environment, grounded in Indian values and traditions will be instilled with the needs of the 21st century on global standards, and hence will be largely helpful in shaping the future of new India.
As per the NEP, 2020, teacher engagement from the year 2030 onwards will be only through ITEP. It will be offered in pilot mode initially in about 50 selected multidisciplinary institutions across the country.