Abstract:

Online learning took over as a form of distance education, as an educational process. So, distance education was adopted as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic after March 2020 and sometimes was maintained until now. In this paper we will present the changes in planning and assessment implemented from the in-person to the distance situation in the classes of data analysis.

Data analysis is a course of a Primary School Teaching degree (that may be future teacher, early childhood or until ages 11-12) of a north-eastern university in Portugal. We will present the aims, planning and implementation of the classes before and after Covid-19. The main aspects are connected to the way classes work is done.

Even before Covid-19 students class work and assessment had incorporated technology, but after Covid-19 all the classes were on line and it was important to maintain the interest and the students’ motivation. Those concerns were not only connected to the data analysis contents but with all the logistics involved in the first semester of 2020/2021 that was fully taught online since the teacher was allowed to do it.

Aiming to prepare the practice of future teachers in the classes before Covid-19 several tasks with hands-on experiences were made and now some simulations were used, based on internet websites.

The present paper presents a work of a qualitative and descriptive nature. The reported interventions – pre and post Covid-19 classes – will address the planning using an instructional design model, the teaching and learning methods involved, and the assessment. In 2019/2020 this first semester course had 23 students (91% women) and in 2020/2021 it had 15 students (87% women). The changes, compared between academic years, are presented at the level of planning, teaching and learning strategies used, as well as the learning assessment. Through the results obtained, we conclude that there is still work to be done in order to integrate more tasks connected with learning using technology in the online, post Covid-19, classes.

Keywords:

Distance learning, Data analysis, Tasks.