BLENDING OF SOCIAL COGNITIVE ABILITIES IN TEACHER EDUCATION: AN INEXORABLENESS TO SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT (Pages 86-100) by Dr. B. William Dharma Raja* and Ms. Bincy Mathew** in THE INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH SPECIALIST / ISSN: 2350-1499 (Online); 2350-0751 (Print)

True education is a process of developing the human personality in all its dimensions of cognitive and non-cognitive fields. The present curriculum of teacher education has paved way for future education, and it still, entails in the contemporary society to grasp the pressing need of the hour. The importance of competent teachers for the nation can in no way be overemphasized. The main purpose of this article is to provide the need for fusion of social cognitive abilities in teacher education. The holistic education focuses on the development of cognitive and non-cognitive abilities and it is inevitable in education for a sustainable development. It is well known that the quality and extent of learner achievement are determined by teacher competence, sensitivity and impetus. Social cognitive theory offers teacher educators a model for understanding the reason for inadequate curriculum and for developing teacher education practices that can overcome the encumbrance to effective teacher education. Social cognitive abilities in teacher education would strengthen the skills of problem solving, critical thinking, and decision making and thereby augment teacher effectiveness. The curriculum and objectives chosen for the prospective teachers ought to reflect their goal of becoming as independent as possible both in existing and future living environments. Keywords: Social cognitive abilities, Problem solving, Critical thinking, Decision making, Holistic education.