Integrative and inclusive learning practices: reflections on teacher (trans)formation

Abstract

Amongst the several matters on the subject of teacher education raised during the COVID-19 pandemic, this study addresses inclusive practices, seeking to answer the following research question: “How do Integrative and Inclusive Learning Practices – IILP (Alves, 2016) in teacher education help promote inclusive education, considering the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic?”.  To this end, we have conducted a systematic literature review encompassing studies on IILP in teacher education developed during the pandemic. The theoretical underpinnings are the Ecosystemic Educational Paradigm and Complex and Transdisciplinary Thinking. We have ascertained that there is still limited research conducted within this framework, due to its novelty. No studies on the subject of IILP in teacher education were found; thus, we note the relevance of reflecting about (trans)formative possibilities in educational contexts from an inclusive point of view. On the basis of such observations, teacher education spaces can be crucial to promote IILP as transformative strategies indispensable to both future and present education, so that we may better understand and shed light upon how IILP can improve teacher education and inclusive practices. Additionally, adopting the complex, transdisciplinary, and ecosystemic approach to teacher education equips us to deal with the instabilities and uncertainties of life in its inherent complexity.