Lessons learned through crisis: the effect of Covid-19 on pre-service Technology Education teacher development

Abstract

The Covid-19 pandemic forced post-secondary institutions to shift their technical offerings to blended and/or remote delivery. The Pandemic was a catalyst for pre-service Technology Education programs, traditionally designed for face-to-face learning, to explore innovative pedagogical arrangements. The purpose of this study was to understand the experiences and perceptions of pre-service teachers as they navigated their way through their Pandemic-impacted Technology Education Diploma program. In particular, pre-service teachers were asked about the challenges, benefits, and lessons learned through their lived experiences dealing with the re-organization for remote and blended learning in response to the various waves of the Covid-19 Pandemic. An exploration of the learner experience within pre-service Technology Education programs contributes to a growing body of literature that continues to offer meaningful insight on the institutional arrangements to cope with the limitations brought on by the Pandemic. Interviews from a purposeful sample of nine (N = 9) pre-service teachers was the primary data source within this qualitative study that sought to understand the following research question: How have institutional responses to Covid-19 impacted the experiences and perceptions of pre-service teachers enrolled in a re-organized Technology Education Diploma program? Thematic analysis was used to identify and explore recurring nodes within the data. The findings of this study suggest that the shift in instructional modality had significant impacts on how pre-service teachers experienced their Technology Education program. The reorganization delayed the development of peer relationships within the program cohorts and disrupted lines of communication.