Role of Teachers in Creating Transgender-Inclusive Higher Education Classrooms: NEP-2020- A Qualitative Study

Abstract This qualitative analysis discusses the central role of teachers in universities in designing transgender-inclusive educational environments within the ambit of the National Education Policy 2020 (NEP-2020). While the Indian academic community is evolving in sync with global developments, NEP-2020 looks toward equity, diversity, and inclusivity as driving forces to drive reform. The study is centered on the explicit influence of pedagogical practice, attitude, and teaching decisions on the social and educational lives of transgender students. It theoretically covers theoretical knowledge of inclusive education interactively, recognizes institutional and cultural barriers to implementation, and recommends actions for building supportive environments. By way of conceptual models, structural diagrams, and flowcharts, the study provides implementable frameworks to guide policy and practice. These findings are meant to guide teachers, policymakers, and educational leaders in the development of interventions that transition from symbolic inclusion to enable active engagement of transgender students at the university level. Through its focus on empathy, sensitivity training, and curriculum infusion, the paper calls for system change in an effort to create campuses where students of any gender identity can thrive academically and personally. (Government of India, 2020). (UNESCO, 2021). (Connell, 2012; Nanda, 2019). (Joshi & Malhotra, 2022).