Inclusive education competency in early childhood: the mediating role of self-development in achieving sustainable development goal 4

This study reconceptualizes Inclusive Education Competency (IEC) in early childhood as a product of activation rather than accumulation. We argue that Inclusive Education Disposition (IED) and Inclusive Education Knowledge (IEK) are necessary but insufficient conditions for inclusive practice; Self-Development (SD)—defined here as disciplined cycles of goal setting, monitoring, help-seeking, and reflection—functions as the proximal mechanism through which what teachers value and know is translated into what they consistently do in classrooms. Using a cross-sectional survey of in-service preschool teachers in Shanghai ( N = 355), we tested this activation framework through covariance-based structural equation modeling (CB-SEM) with 5,000-resample bootstrap inference. Reliability and convergent validity were strong, although SD–IEC discriminant validity was borderline under the item-level HTMT criterion (0.904); the structural model demonstrated adequate fit. SD was the strongest predictor of IEC ( β = 0.743, p < 0.001), while IED and IEK retained modest direct effects and significant indirect effects via SD, supporting partial mediation. The model explained 68.7% of the variance in SD and 86.2% of the variance in IEC. These findings shift the explanation of inclusive competency from static attributes to dynamic processes of professional change. In practical terms, systems pursuing Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG4)—that is, inclusive and equitable quality education for all—should institutionalize routines that support teacher self-development, including protected collaborative planning time, goal-based coaching, short plan–do–study–act cycles, peer observation, and formative evidence use. The study offers an empirically supported four-construct framework and practical implications for policy, leadership, and professional learning design.