Abstract:

In light of the rising concerns about the spread of novel Corona Virus and the resulting Covid-19 Pandemic a numbers of daily activities have been disrupted. Negative effects impacted on schooling and, globally, the majority of the University and Tertiary Institutions in general have shut down shifting to distance teaching. As a result of this, instructors world-wide had to quickly adapt strategies, methods and materials based on the new learning environment. Online learning refers to an electronic learning environment that imposes certain responsibilities on students and teachers, who are probably the most important variables in education. By reason of their peculiarities, distance learning actions also require specific evaluation procedures throughout qualitative and quantitative methodologies, focusing the performance assessment and the learning process (Benigno & Trentin, 1999). Specialist literature refers the ambiguity about how to teach (timing or methods), what to teach, the capacity of teachers and students, the teaching environment, and the implications for education equity (Zhang, Wang, Yang, & Wang, 2020) and highlights deficiencies such as the weakness of online teaching infrastructure, the inexperience of teachers or the information gap (Murgatrotd, 2020). The number of complications even increase if we reflect on Laboratory Instruction that is mandatory and connotative in Primary School Teacher education. In Italy, Single-cycle Primary Teacher Education degree programs provide opportunities for training with Laboratory methods, to develop in the future teacher both knowledge and strategies based on students age, education or cultural backgrounds. The purpose of this study is to investigate the students’ experience about online Laboratory classes during Pandemic crisis, focusing on the used platform, teaching materials and strategies adopted and the general organization. This article presents a quantitative, non- experimental and ex-post-facto research focused on the perceptions of the future teachers of primary education about the organization of remote Labs they attended, due to the sanitary emergency. Data was collected through a no-tested research survey administered with an online free app. Data were collected through convenience sampling from 749 Single-cycle Primary Teacher Education students, from first year course to the fifth, attending university in one of the most important athenaeum in Southern Italy, at the end of their last second semester. The quantitative results from the closed-response questions revealed a general satisfaction about Laboratory classes during University shut down and it prevails the recognition of instructors’ work adapting activities for distance Labs. Despite strengths, online Laboratory class is still a challenge for policy-makers, instructors and stakeholders if the concerns about Covid-19 Pandemic will remain unchanged.

Keywords:

Distance Learning, Teacher Training, Laboratory Classes, Satisfaction, Covid-19 Pandemic.