Implementing Inclusive Education in the Classroom: Teacher Competencies, Beliefs, and Continuous Professional Development
摘要
This chapter synthesises scholarship on teachers’ central role in the effective implementation of inclusive education at classroom level, with particular attention to teacher competencies, teacher beliefs and attitudes, continuous professional development (CPD), and inclusive classroom management. Inclusive education is conceptualised as a pedagogical approach that responds to learner diversity and aims to promote the academic, social, and emotional development of all pupils. The chapter delineates core competencies associated with inclusive teaching, including planning differentiated instruction, designing accessible learning materials and activities, establishing a positive and safe classroom climate, monitoring participation, and using classroom-based evidence to inform instructional decision-making. It further examines the ways in which teachers’ beliefs shape the enactment and quality of inclusive practices, drawing on relevant theoretical perspectives and foregrounding the importance of sustained, practice-oriented CPD in supporting meaningful professional learning and belief change. Key constraints that hinder CPD uptake and impact, such as time and workload pressures, limited resources, overly theory-driven training designs, and insufficient mentoring, are discussed alongside evidence-informed design responses, including flexible and modular CPD structures, professional learning communities, technology-enhanced learning opportunities, and systematic feedback mechanisms. In relation to inclusive classroom management, the chapter considers illustrative approaches from Positive Behaviour Support frameworks in the United States and restorative justice practices in the United Kingdom, highlighting implications for prevention, positive reinforcement, conflict resolution, and belonging. Technology-supported teaching is addressed through universal design principles, with a focus on the accessibility and personalisation potential of digital tools when their use is guided by clear pedagogical purposes and professional judgement. The chapter concludes by outlining research priorities concerning the long-term effects of CPD, context-sensitive technology adaptations, and teacher-related factors that strengthen inclusive pedagogy over time.