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Abstract: Emerging scholarship asserts that education during the COVID-19 pandemic should be viewed from the perspective of trauma. To address the complexities and navigate the ongoing challenges of simultaneously revising courses and field experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic, one teacher preparation program purposely embedded trauma-informed practices to ensure the social and emotional needs of teacher candidates were met. This research centers on understanding teacher candidates perspectives of these changes that coupled mental health strategies with a move to remote instruction during the COVID-19 pandemic. Findings are organized around three themes: (a) engaging in pedagogical problem solving, (b) establishing an online community, and (c) building empathy. Implications and future research questions are also shared. In all, this research has the potential to inform program design efforts as it highlights the benefits of innovative course delivery as well as the persistent challenges of learning to teach during a crisis.
KEYWORDS: teacher preparation during COVID-19, school-university partnerships, traumainformed practices, social emotional learning.
Over the past few decades, numerous professional associations and accrediting bodies have called upon teacher preparation programs to integrate opportunities to apply teaching strategies in PK-12 classrooms by encouraging design innovations like professional development schools (PDSs), school-university partnerships, and teacher residencies (American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education [AACTE], 2018; Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation [CAEP], 2013; Holmes Group, 1986, 1990, 1995; National Association of Professional Development Schools [NAPDS], 2021; National Council of Accreditation of Teacher Education [NCATE], 2010). To accomplish this lofty goal, university and school-based teacher education faculty must foster an environment that supports innovation, creativity, and thinking beyond traditional models of teacher preparation. This work centers on providing multiple opportunities for teacher candidates to engage for extended periods in authentic classroom settings with support from university faculty and school-based mentors. School-university partnerships provide these spaces for teacher candidates to learn their craft.
During the spring of 2020, teacher preparation programs were dramatically impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic as PK-12 schools closed and teacher preparation programs moved to remote instruction. This radical shift not only impacted PK-12 schools but also had implications for teacher preparation programs across the nation (Hyler, 2020; Kidd & Murray, 2020). Programs had to quickly adapt to ensure that teacher candidates could complete their coursework while shifting...