The UNESCO Regional Office for South Asia and the Regional Institute of Education (RIE), National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT), Bhubaneswar, launched a joint initiative to strengthen the integration of Health and Well-being into the pre-service teacher education curriculum.
Currently, a three-day workshop is being held at RIE Bhubaneswar from 29-31 October 2025, bringing together academicians from RIEs, teacher educators from different institutions of the state of Odisha,, curriculum developers and experts to develop supplementary materials and map the integration of Health and Well-being within the Integrated Teacher Education Programme (ITEP).
This workshop marks the first activity following the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between UNESCO and RIE NCERT. The collaboration aims to develop exemplar curricular content on health and well-being for the Integrated Teacher Education Programmes. The effort seeks to equip future teachers with the knowledge, skills, and empathy required to foster safe, inclusive, and health-promoting learning environments, in alignment with NEP 2020, SDG 3 – Good Health and Well-being, SDG 4 – Quality Education, and SDG 5 – Gender Equality.
Inaugurating the three day workshop Prof. Manasi Goswami, Principal, Regional Institute of Education (RIE), Bhubaneswar, expressed her appreciation for UNESCO’s continued collaboration, stating, “We deeply value UNESCO’s partnership in this important initiative, which will not only provide us with technical guidance but also bring in regional and global best practices to strengthen the integration of health and well-being in teacher education with focus on NEP 2020.”
Prof. H.K.Senapaty, Former Director, NCERT and Chairperson MoU Committee, RIE Bhubaneswar in his address focused on health and well-being components to be incorporated in content, pedagogy and assessment including field engagement activities of pre-service teacher education curriculum.
Ms. Sarita Jadav, National Programme Officer, Education, UNESCO Regional Office for South Asia, emphasized the growing importance of prioritizing health and well-being in today’s education systems. She remarked, “Promoting health and well-being among learners and educators is no longer optional—it is essential to quality education. The collaboration between RIE NCERT and UNESCO exemplifies how collective efforts can build the capacity of future teachers to create safe, inclusive, and supportive learning environments.”
Through this initiative, UNESCO and RIE NCERT aim to integrate key aspects of physical, mental, and social well-being into teacher education curricula, ensuring that all prospective educators are equipped to nurture holistic development among learners. Teacher educators participating in the workshop will gain hands-on experience in adapting the School Health and Wellness Programme (SHWP) content for pre-service teacher education. The supplementary material will guide teacher educators to promote emotional well-being, gender equality, digital safety, nutrition awareness, and interpersonal respect in their classrooms.
Teacher educators from 14 Teacher Education Institutions of Odisha, RIE, Bhubaneswar, Mysuru, NERIE, Shillong and experts are engaged in workshop mode for developing guidelines for integration of health and well-being in teacher education. The programme is attended virtually by Principals and teacher educators of Tagore Govt. College of Education, Port Blair, Andaman & Nicobar Islands and Shri Agrasen Snatkottar Shiksha Mahavidyalaya,Jaipur, Rajsthan, Institute for Education, Saraikela,Jharkhand.
During the workshop Prof. Ritanjali Dash, Head DEE, RIE Bhubaneswar, Prof. Laxmidhar Behera, Head DE and Coordinator, RIE Bhubaneswar, Prof. Saroj Bala Yadav, Former Dean (Academic), NCERT, Dr. Mohit Mohan Mohanty former Director SIEMT, Odisha and Mr. Prashant Yadav, Associate Programme Coordinator, UNESCO were present.
