Education for Inclusion: Unpacking Pre-Service Teachers’ Perceived Readiness, Knowledge and Competencies

Learners’ diversity poses a complex challenge for learning outcomes and for the teaching process. Teachers often find it difficult to navigate such challenges while also sustaining the tenets of inclusive education. To ensure the continued sustenance of inclusive education, pre-service teachers are expected to be ready, knowledgeable, and competent in inclusive classroom pedagogy. The purpose of this study, therefore, is to assess the level of pre-service teachers’ readiness, knowledge, and competencies in promoting inclusive classroom teaching and learning during teaching practicum. Underpinned by the inclusive pedagogy framework, the study utilised the survey research design, with a sample consisting of 260 third- and fourth-year pre-service teachers at the Faculty of Education in a sampled public university. The Pre-Service Teachers’ Perceived Readiness, Knowledge, and Competencies for Inclusive Classroom Teaching Questionnaire (PTPRKCITQ) (α = 0.86) was designed as a data collection tool. Data obtained for the study were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics via SPSS V 26. The results reveal that pre-service teachers’ readiness for inclusive classroom teaching is high; they have adequate knowledge of inclusive education and a high level of competencies in creating and managing inclusive learning environments; gender does not significantly influence pre-service teachers’ readiness, knowledge, or competence for inclusive education practices; and the factors militating against pre-service teachers’ implementation of inclusive education were identified. Recommendations for policy, theory, and practice are made.