Health and Well-Being to Become Core Focus in Odisha’s Teacher Education Programmes

A dynamic step from UNESCO, together with the Regional Institute of Education, Bhubaneswar (RIE), comes under the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) through a two-year partnership for the integration of health and well-being in education. In other pre-service teacher education programs like the Integrated B.Sc.-B.Ed., The MOU was also signed with the hope that it would include the B.A.-B.Ed. and B.Ed. programs into the trend of health and well-being incorporation into pre-teacher education programs at the UNESCO Office in New Delhi.

The partnership is therefore considered an important step towards the transformation of teacher education to safely create inclusive and health-promoting classrooms. As such, this partnership builds on prior work done by UNESCO with NCERT through the Government of India's flagship School Health and Wellness Programme (SHWP). More than 3 million students have already received access to this program, while also training 40,000 teachers and including 960 principals from 30,000 CBSE-connected schools.

Tim Curtis, Director and Representative of the UNESCO Regional Office for South Asia, underscored the need to effect real change at the state level. According to him, this partnership with RIE Bhubaneswar will assist in preparing future educators in Odisha to nurture resilient and caring students. He said he hoped that other states would be able to do so in the years ahead.

A few objectives defined in the Memorandum of Understanding can be achieved throughout this UNESCO teacher training partnership:

• A pilot health and well-being handbook for teacher educators and prospective teachers.

• Capacity building workshops across B.Ed. institutions in Odisha.

• Integrating health and well-being modules in the existing curricula.

• Approval and finalisation of supplementary materials through endorsement by UNESCO.

Prof. P C Agarwal, Joint Director of NCERT, stated that UNESCO's earlier contributions provided a good foundation for a strong group of master trainers. He also assured NECRT of further support for the continuation of this initiative with a view to its exportation into other regions. He stated that this MoU could be seen as a landmark decision in the direction of health and well-being in education.

According to Prof. Manasi Goswami, Principal of RIE NCERT Bhubaneswar, this is the first agreement of this type for the institution. He explained that while RIE already offers credit courses on health, the implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 calls for a renewed focus on well-being as a core part of teacher education. She expressed her appreciation for UNESCO's support in strengthening and reforming its courses toward a broader vision of holistic and sustainable education.

Present at the ceremony were Ms Joyce Poan (Programme Specialist and Chief of Education at UNESCO), Prof. Hrushikesh Senapaty (Former Director, NCERT, and Professor at RIE), and Sarita Jadav (National Programme Officer, UNESCO). UNESCO is about to engage NCTE in advocating for health and well-being to be incorporated into teacher education nationwide. This step is intended for sustainability and impact in the long run, so as to cement the partnership of public health with teacher training and capacity building in education institutes. The partnership and hope show how teacher education can improve the well-being of the students and learning outcomes. It further enhances the dire need for health education within teacher training programmes and the role of RIE Bhubaneswar in spearheading regional implementation.

Editor’s Note:

Apart from being subject specialists, this partnership between UNESCO and the Regional Institute of Education Bhubaneswar stands on a timely and essential transition of how future teachers are prepared as champions of student well-being. Health and well-being should no longer be an optional part of pre-service teacher education; they are essential components. Such inclusion of structured modules, capacity-building workshops, and a dedicated handbook shows the trajectory of inclusion towards what is not only academically rigorous but also emotionally safe and inclusive classrooms. When teachers are trained in recognising and supporting their students' mental and emotional health and even physical hitches with their databases, the students become more resilient, engaged, and likely to thrive inside as well as outside the classroom. This endeavour would also serve in the larger mission that has been set forth by the National Education Policy 2020, which rightly puts holistic and sustainable education as the crux of reform. In empowering teacher educators and future teachers about the capacity to incorporate well-being, this partnership has laid the groundwork for a long-standing change, not in the state of Odisha alone, but across what is likely to be India's entire landscape.

Skoobuzz believes that this partnership directly benefits students. Teachers equipped with well-being strategies can foster a learning environment where every child feels secure, supported, and truly recognised. This is precisely the kind of education system we should collectively strive to achieve.

FAQs

1. What is the purpose of the MoU between UNESCO and RIE Bhubaneswar?

The Memorandum of Understanding aims to embed health and well-being into pre-service teacher education programmes, including Integrated B.Sc.-B.Ed., B.A.-B.Ed., and B.Ed., to promote safe, inclusive, and health-promoting classrooms.

2. How does this partnership build on previous initiatives?

The collaboration builds on UNESCO’s earlier work with NCERT under the School Health and Wellness Programme, which has reached over 3 million learners, trained 40,000 teachers, and engaged 960 principals across 30,000 CBSE-affiliated schools.

3. What are the key objectives outlined in the MoU?

The partnership will:

• Pilot a health and well-being handbook for teacher educators and prospective teachers

• Conduct capacity-building workshops across B.Ed. institutions in Odisha

• Integrate health and well-being modules into existing curricula

• Evaluate and finalise supplementary materials with UNESCO’s endorsement

4. What role will RIE Bhubaneswar play in this initiative?

RIE Bhubaneswar will lead regional implementation, using its existing health-related credit courses and aligning them with the National Education Policy 2020 to strengthen holistic and sustainable education in teacher training.

5. How will this partnership benefit students?

By equipping future teachers with the knowledge and tools to support learner well-being, the initiative aims to create classrooms that foster resilience, compassion, and improved learning outcomes.

6. What is UNESCO’s broader vision for this initiative?

UNESCO intends to engage with the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) to advocate for nationwide integration of health and well-being in teacher education, ensuring long-term sustainability and systemic impact.