https://doi.org/10.15446/profile.v25n2.102959
Teaching Practicums During the Pandemic in an Initial English Teacher
Education Program: The Preservice Teachers’ Perspective
Práctica pedagógica durante la pandemia en un programa de formación de
profesores de inglés: la perspectiva de profesoras y profesores en formación
Verónica Ormeño
Minerva Rosas
1
Universidad de Los Lagos, Osorno, Chile
In an initial English teacher education program at a Chilean institution, early and professional practicums were
re-invented during the COVID-19 pandemic to ensure the continuity of this process. This study analyzed the
context and conditions under which these practicums unfolded and how the process influenced participants’
pedagogical and professional knowledge development. Forty-two preservice English language teachers
undergoing early and professional practicums online throughout 2020–2021 answered an online questionnaire
which was analyzed through descriptive statistics and content analysis. Findings revealed preservice teachers’
problems, strengths, weaknesses, and challenges while interacting with pupils, cooperating teachers, and
supervisors, as well as the development of some pedagogical and professional knowledge. The findings may
serve to make adaptations to increasingly challenging teaching contexts.
Keywords: English language teaching, online remote teaching, practicum, preservice teachers
Las prácticas tempranas y profesionales de un programa de formación inicial de profesores de inglés en una
universidad chilena fueron reinventadas durante la pandemia de COVID-19 para dar continuidad al proceso
de formación. Este estudio buscó analizar el contexto y las condiciones en que dichas prácticas se desarrollaron
y cómo influyeron en el conocimiento pedagógico y profesional de los profesores de inglés en formación. Para
ello, 42 participantes que realizaron su práctica pedagógica en el periodo 2020–2021 respondieron una encuesta
en línea cuyos datos se analizaron mediante estadística descriptiva y análisis de contenido. Los resultados
permitieron identificar problemas, fortalezas, debilidades y desafíos en la interacción de los participantes con
estudiantes, profesores colaboradores y supervisores, y el desarrollo parcial de un conocimiento pedagógico
y profesional. Los resultados pueden orientar adaptaciones a contextos educativos cada vez más desafiantes.
Palabras clave: enseñanza del inglés, enseñanza remota, práctica pedagógica, profesores en formación
Verónica Ormeño https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7129-7142 · Email: vormeno@ulagos.cl
Minerva Rosas https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4904-7112 · Email: mrosas@ulagos.cl
How to cite this article (APA, 7th ed.): Ormeño, V., & Rosas, M. (2023). Teaching practicums during the pandemic in an initial English teacher
education program: The preservice teachers’ perspective. Profile: Issues in Teachers’ Professional Development, 25(2), 49–64. https://doi.org/10.15446/
profile.v25n2.102959
This article was received on May 31, 2022 and accepted on March 13, 2023.
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons license Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0
International License. Consultation is possible at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
Profile: Issues Teach. Prof. Dev., Vol. 25 No. 2, July-Dec., 2023. ISSN 1657-0790 (printed) 2256-5760 (online). Bogotá, Colombia. Pages 49-64
49
Ormeño & Rosas
Introduction
Due to global health concerns, the coronavirus
pandemic has forced people to “stay at home,”
disrupting all social activities, including education.
Although this has been beneficial in diminishing
the pandemic, it is also costly for countries (Kidd &
Murray, 2020). Many countries were unprepared to
face such unforeseen circumstances, and, in the area of
education, institutions had to quickly resort to distance
education to maintain their services (SepulvedaEscobar & Morrison, 2020).
According to UNESCO (2020), some of the most
harmful effects of school closures due to coronavirus
include:
a) Interrupted learning because schools provide essential learning, and when they are closed, students
are deprived of opportunities for growth and development;
b) unequal access to digital learning platforms, resulting in some students lacking access to technology
or good internet connectivity for continued learning during school closures; and
c) social isolation, since educational institutions promote social activity and human interactions, school
closures can deprive youth and children of some
social communications and socialization that are
essential to learning, development, and creativity.
In this context, teachers had to teach online, and
students had to adjust to remote learning. Given that
“being a language teacher triggers its own unique
challenges resulting from the specificity and the
emotional character of foreign-language teaching”
(MacIntyre et al., 2020, p. 2), teaching a foreign
language is already complex. The transition has
posed additional challenges to teachers and learners
in countries with no relevant infrastructure to facilitate
online education. This digital divide was a big issue,
particularly for learners in rural areas, as they often
lack the needed facilities and expertise to implement
50
remote teaching and learning. Then, technology
emerged as a resource to bridge the educational gaps
derived from the unscheduled closure of schools
during the pandemic, even though many teachers and
students lacked the digital skills to implement online
education. All of this added to the usual stressors that
have been identified in the work of language teachers
(i.e., self-doubt about their language abilities, “coping
with the emotional anxiety of learners, heterogeneous
proficiency in learner groups, threats to a sense of self
and identity, energy-intense teaching methodologies,
intercultural components to teaching, and precarious
working conditions” (MacIntyre et al., 2020, p. 3).
Because technology has become an intrinsic
component of these processes, the rapid move to
online teaching imposed by the pandemic has also
had an impact on teacher education at universities,
particularly on the teaching practicums (Fořtová et
al., 2021; Vancell, 2021). The earliest research on initial
teacher education has disregarded how virtual teaching
practicums can provide opportunities and challenges
for preservice teachers to learn how to teach (Clarke,
2013; Sepulveda-Escobar & Morrison, 2020). In this
article, we analyze the effect of online practicums on a
group of preservice teachers from a southern university
in Chile. These preservice teachers have six sequential
teaching practicums with particular aims, providing
them with long and rigorous processes of training and
qualification (Hargreaves & Fullan, 2012) and allowing
them to engage in reflective practice (Schön, 1987)
within their specific contexts (see Table 1).
The practicum fostered by the university
program analyzed in this article encourages a
reflective approach, as shown in Table 1 (Rosas et
al., 2020). Practicum supervision provides guidance
and advice on school placement and lesson planning,
evaluates preservice teachers’ performance in action,
and includes feedback that fosters the development
of teacher identity and autonomy (Lara-Diaz, 2019).
In the current pandemic, the study’s preservice
Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Facultad de Ciencias Humanas, Departamento de Lenguas Extranjeras
Teaching Practicums During the Pandemic in an Initial English Teacher Education Program...
Table 1. Progressive Teaching Practicums
Semester a
Practicum
mode
Duration
Focus and aims
4b
Observation
One week
Observation of the school and educational context to
know the different kinds of schools (public, subsidized,
and private)
5
Workshop
development
Four weeks
Interdisciplinary workshop in extra-curricular activities
(e.g., music, arts, chess). To implement activities
according to the needs diagnosed in schools
6
Assistantship
16 weeks
Helping teachers with the preparation of class materials
or acting as monitors coaching the pupils during one
term. To learn about teachers’ duties and tasks
7
Assistantship and
sheltered teaching
16 weeks
Assistantship and sheltered teaching. To teach small
segments of lessons helping cooperating teachers and
making ethnographic notes about their lessons
8
Teaching and
research
16 weeks
Teaching a unit, planning an innovation project
according to ethnographic notes, and detecting pupils’
needs. To design and pilot the instruments used in their
innovation projects (pre-test & questionnaires)
9
Implementation
of the innovation
project
16 weeks
Student-teachers are entirely in charge of a class
to implement innovation projects. Analysis and
interpretation of data gathered.
Reflection about results. Writing of final reports.
a
Duration of a semester: approximately 16 weeks. b Semesters 4, 5, and 6 correspond to early teaching practicums, while Semesters 8 and 9
correspond to professional practicums.
teachers had to adapt to the new remote teaching
modality during the practicum process yet develop
similar actions to those shown in Table 1. The
practicum supervision by university agents also
had to be adapted to the new modality. It imposed
additional challenges to an already challenging task:
coordinating times and access for online visits and
feedback sessions afterward, defining the observation
focus, and being attentive to the various needs of
the preservice teachers as the process unfolded. The
participants’ family contexts and conditions and the
virtualization process impacted their pedagogical
and professional knowledge development, giving
evidence of various issues emerging from the
experience. Given this context, this study sought to
identify the conditions and contexts in which early
teaching practicum and professional practicum
developed to determine the characteristics of the
process of virtualization of these practicums in
the development of pedagogical and professional
knowledge for a group of English preservice teachers
and to identify the main strengths, weaknesses, and
challenges emerged in the practicums carried out
in 2020–2021.
Profile: Issues Teach. Prof. Dev., Vol. 25 No. 2, Jul-Dec, 2023. ISSN 1657-0790 (printed) 2256-5760 (online). Bogotá, Colombia. Pages 49-64
51
Ormeño & Rosas
Theoretical Framework
Practicum in Pandemic
Since March 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic has
forced teachers to adapt to online teaching, imposing
unprecedented challenges on teachers, students, and
the whole teaching and learning process. Until then,
most preservice teachers in Chile attended their school
placements according to their timetables and fulfilled
their teaching responsibilities for early teaching and
professional practicum, as required in their program
regulations. Then, COVID-19 emerged, schools
closed, and lockdowns became the norm, adding
stressors to the already stress-loaded task of teachers.
To avoid interrupting the developmental process
involved, university teacher education programs in
Chile rapidly devised ways to move on. In the case of
the English teaching program analyzed in this study,
these alternative ways involved preservice teachers in
online practicum, and they strived to adapt themselves
to the new conditions. To help them move forward,
they were instructed in the use of various applications
freely available at the time (e.g., Peardeck, Nearpod,
Mentimeter, Kahoot, and Quizzes) to implement new
approaches to teaching and learning English as a foreign
language in the school system, fulfill practicum aims,
and succeed in supervision visits.
Practicum Supervision
Practicum super vision involves ongoing
development taking place in real-time in a realworld setting (Baird & Mollen, 2019). Supervision is
considered both important and valuable; thus, in the
context of the pandemic, most university teaching
programs in Chile reframed their practicum to give
continuity to the whole preservice program and
were done online throughout 2020–2021. Given this
situation, preservice teachers were supervised online
too, which made the process more challenging,
particularly in terms of the relationship between
52
supervisors and preservice teachers, as it ended up
being more emotionally detached.
Qualities associated with effective supervisors
include encouraging preservice teachers’ autonomy,
being receptive to their ideas, and providing positive
and constructive feedback. Supervisors facilitate
various learning opportunities, reviewing preservice
teachers’ work and assessing and evaluating their
professional development and performance (Baird &
Mollen, 2019), depending on the supervision model
adopted. Traditionally, there have been three models:
the nominal model, which aims to make it evident that
supervision is provided; the prescriptive model, which
views the supervisor as the authority who unveils
weaknesses and suggests ways to perform correctly;
and the reflective model, which sees the supervisor as
an activator of reflection on actions and about actions
in the preservice teacher’s performance to develop
expertise (Bailey, 2006). The first and the second are
probably the most traditional models used until the
last century. At the same time, the third one is fostered
by current constructivist trends in education and is
adopted in the program analyzed in this article.
Based on Freeman (1989), Bailey (2006) identifies
three options for observing and giving feedback
to language teachers: supervisory, non-directive,
and alternatives. The first refers to the role of the
prescriptive expert, while the second is the nonjudgmental guide. Additionally, in the alternatives
option, the supervisor’s responsibility consists of
helping teachers reflect and explain their teaching
choices and discuss alternative ways of doing things.
While many preservice teachers have positive
experiences in supervision, findings suggest that
inadequate, ineffective, and even harmful supervisory
experiences are relatively common (Ellis et al., 2014;
Ladany et al., 2013), as “the practicum continues to
be a difficult and unsatisfactory learning experience
for many prospective teachers” (Talvitie et al., 2000,
p. 87). When asking supervisees to identify qualities
Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Facultad de Ciencias Humanas, Departamento de Lenguas Extranjeras
Teaching Practicums During the Pandemic in an Initial English Teacher Education Program...
associated with effective supervisors, research has
found that the best supervisors encourage autonomy,
strengthen the supervisory relationship, and facilitate
open discussion, while the most ineffective disregard
supervision (Ladany et al., 2013). This is consistent with
research in which preservice teachers reported positive
as well as negative experiences in their relationship
with supervisors (Rosas et al., 2020) and highlighted
the quality of the dialogue unfolded as well as its
capacity to provoke reflection as major factors during
the practicum (Talvitie et al., 2000) and how much
it provokes reflection. On the other hand, there is
little time for reflection in some programs, which the
preservice teachers perceive as a loss (Barahona, 2014).
As stated above, due to the problematic situation
faced by all initial teaching education programs in Chile,
it was necessary to change in-person classes to online
teaching; this modality has been defined as emergency
remote teaching by some authors.
Emergency Remote Teaching
According to Díaz-Maggioli (2021), what teachers
have been doing during the pandemic is not distance
learning, blended learning, or hybrid learning; it is
simply emergency remote teaching (ERT), a view
shared by various researchers in the field of education
(Bozkurt & Sharma, 2020; Hodges et al., 2020;
Özüdoğru, 2021; Stephens & Curwood, 2022). This is
an abrupt and transitory change in teaching delivery
due to unforeseen circumstances. In a way, ERT is a
quick-fix solution to a problem; it is not an attempt to
reconstruct an entire “ecosystem but rather to provide
temporary access to teaching and instructional support
in a manner that is quick to set up and immediately
available during an emergency crisis” (Hodges et al.,
2020, p. 6). This is a way to sustain education in almost
all countries (Bozkurt & Sharma, 2020).
ERT has significantly impacted instructors and
pupils, regardless of its long-term viability. Existing
literature has identified major difficulties in its use,
such as poor online teaching infrastructure, teachers’
technological inexperience and knowledge, and the
complexity of home working (Carrillo & Flores, 2020).
Initially, student engagement in school was often
sporadic and superficial in these types of sessions.
Embarrassed turn-taking on video conferences and
artificial use of the chat function for queries initially
replaced interactive classroom practice in smaller
groups. However, initiatives for increasing student
participation in all online communities arose over
time. Some of them included expectations for timed
student interactions, which had to be communicated;
opportunities for sense-making (individually and
in groups); extensive and improved scaffolding of
learning; and collaborative on and off-line video tasks
(Kidd & Murray, 2020).
Even though all official practicum environments
were withdrawn, removed, or postponed (Morrison
& Sepulveda-Escobar, 2021; Sepulveda-Escobar &
Morrison, 2020), as in the context of this study, new
types of practicums were developed. This entailed
(re)locating and (re)framing learning spaces and
practicums to fit the online mode once teacher
education programs were relaunched after institutions,
teacher educators, and preservice teachers made sense
of the situation and confronted it by supporting their
students’ professional learning.
While various studies suggest the benefits of
incorporating a virtual learning platform as an additional
or supportive resource for teaching and learning,
few have considered them a primary pedagogical
device. With the transition to online learning models,
these platforms adopted new features to facilitate
communication, education, and learning practices. The
new centrality of technology has meant that established
practices had to evolve, and teachers had to choose or
were instructed to take advantage of a combination of
synchronous and asynchronous strategies (Stephens
& Curwood, 2022). These included using several
applications for teaching and learning online; however,
Profile: Issues Teach. Prof. Dev., Vol. 25 No. 2, Jul-Dec, 2023. ISSN 1657-0790 (printed) 2256-5760 (online). Bogotá, Colombia. Pages 49-64
53
Ormeño & Rosas
these applications quickly become outdated; hence the
problem is not about technology. It is about pedagogy.
In these circumstances, the key is to mediate learning
through technology, not to teach by technology, and
keep an excellent pedagogical mindset.
Some studies have recently investigated the effects
of ERT and learning processes unfolded from the start
of the pandemic in initial teacher education (DíazMaggioli, 2021; Özüdoğru, 2021; Pérez-López et al.,
2021; Sepulveda-Escobar & Morrison, 2020) and
in-service teaching (MacIntyre et al., 2020). Some
have focused on identifying the multiple challenges
arising from school and university shutdowns, while
others have examined in-service and preservice
teachers’ stress and coping strategies. For example,
Fořtová et al. (2021) found that preservice teachers
were disappointed when numerous programs, online
documents, and procedures did not perform as
expected due to technological challenges or knowledge
gaps that caused malfunctioning (incorrect sharing
settings, not saving the most recent version and
others). Problems of this type became a source of
annoyance for some participants, especially as they
felt powerless to change the situation. Good planning
was crucial for swiftly avoiding or resolving many
situations, even though such planning necessitates
expertise and thoroughness. When reflecting on their
technology-related teaching experiences, preservice
teachers were often aware of the need to plan the
technical portion of the lesson better or have an
alternative option prepared in case the design initially
would not work.
Pedagogical and Professional
Knowledge
Pedagogical knowledge is explained below
according to two different views about the types of
knowledge required for teaching, and professional
knowledge is described concerning what it means to
be a professional.
54
Types of Knowledge in Teaching
It is widely recognized that teaching is very
demanding and challenging and that teachers must
develop and acquire extensive knowledge, expertise,
and practice to become professionals. Shulman (1987)
identifies seven critical types of knowledge for teachers:
1. Content knowledge is the teacher’s knowledge of
the subject, English, in the case of the program
analyzed. This considers the teachers’ need to
develop their proficiency in English as a foreign
language, including mastery of English syntax,
phonology, semantics, culture, and others.
2. General content knowledge refers to those broad
standards and methodologies of classroom administration and organization that go beyond the
subject matter.
3. Curriculum knowledge considers the full extent of
programs designed for teaching the subject, a set of
instructional materials for specific circumstances,
and curricular options for instruction.
4. Pedagogical-content knowledge, that is, the
“methodology” used by teachers, includes their
knowledge of theories of how languages are learned,
approaches, methods, and techniques used in
language programs.
5. Knowledge of learners and their characteristics
addresses different learning styles and strategies,
emphasizes learners’ central role, and makes
teachers aware of the influence of their behavior
on their students’ learning.
6. Knowledge of educational contexts shows how
sociocultural and institutional contexts influence
learning and teaching: What is acceptable or
appropriate in an educational system may not be
so in a different educational system, and this is
especially true when teachers work in educational
contexts different from their own.
7. Knowledge of educational ends, purposes, values,
and philosophical and historical issues. This is
generally not considered necessary in language
Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Facultad de Ciencias Humanas, Departamento de Lenguas Extranjeras
Teaching Practicums During the Pandemic in an Initial English Teacher Education Program...
teacher preparation programs and is often limited
to the historical study of English language teaching
methods. However, studying the sociology,
philosophy, and history of education should be a
significant component of initial teacher education
programs generally held in university settings.
• Shared standards of practice
• Long and rigorous processes of training and qualification . . .
• Autonomy to make informed discretionary judgments
• Working together with other professionals to solve
complex cases
• Commitment to continuous learning and professional
Besides the above, Malderez and Wedell (2007)
summarize teacher knowledge into three dimensions:
knowing about (declarative knowledge), knowing how
(procedural knowledge), and knowing to (intuitive
knowledge). Knowing about is the kind of knowledge
that can be verbalized or clarified; it incorporates
knowledge of the subject to be taught; the way learners
are supposed to learn the subject; the positioning of the
subject within the wider curriculum and the educational
institution, with its culture and rules; the students’
backgrounds and needs; and knowledge of strategies
for teaching practicum managing one’s continuous
professional development. (Rosas et al., 2020, p. 71)
Knowing how is composed of abilities or behaviors
that instructors must master to be effective within the
classroom and the school, including strategies to support the learning of all pupils. Knowing to points to the
expertise created over time by good teachers that permits
them to naturally and instantaneously utilize what they
know at the right moment and adequately support their
students’ learning (Malderez & Wedell, 2007).
Professional Knowledge
The distinction between being professional and
being a professional is highlighted by Hargreaves and
Fullan (2012). The former is concerned with upholding
high standards of behavior and performance, whereas
the latter is concerned with how a person is seen and
how this affects their self-esteem. Some definitions of
what makes a professional include:
• Specialized knowledge, expertise, and professional
language
upgrading
(Hargreaves & Fullan, 2012, p. 80)
These definitions stress the need to simultaneously be professional and a professional, that is, “to
have status and autonomy and be trusted and able to
make informed judgments effectively” (Hargreaves &
Fullan, 2012, p. 81). It is generally acknowledged that
teaching involves a combination of art, craft, and science (Johnson, 2017), characterizing teaching expertise
as knowing what to teach, how to teach it, and what
methods to use to teach specific topics, with particular
types of students in specific contexts; all of these combine to form the teacher’s knowledge base and skills
(Shulman, 1986). In order to equip preservice teachers
to teach effectively in the classroom, teacher education programs work to strengthen their knowledge,
abilities, and personal qualities. Practical fieldwork
through the practicum is crucial to accomplish this
objective, yet the current context of the pandemic has
constrained and added challenges to the development
of this professional.
Method
This was a descriptive case study with a mixedmethods design. The study’s general objective was to
determine the impact of online practicum processes
in developing pedagogical and professional knowledge
for a group of preservice teachers of English. Given this
objective, three research questions were formulated:
1. What were the conditions and contexts in which
early teaching and professional practicum developed
for a group of English preservice teachers?
Profile: Issues Teach. Prof. Dev., Vol. 25 No. 2, Jul-Dec, 2023. ISSN 1657-0790 (printed) 2256-5760 (online). Bogotá, Colombia. Pages 49-64
55
Ormeño & Rosas
2. What characterizes the virtualization process of early
and professional teaching practicum in developing
pedagogical and professional knowledge for a group
of English preservice teachers?
3. What were the main strengths, weaknesses, and
challenges identified during the pedagogical
practices carried out during the pandemic?
Data Collection
The participants were asked to answer a questionnaire through an online Google Form to collect
data. This was specially designed for the research
and consisted of two sections. The first section used
a Likert scale and included questions to contextualize
the survey and focused on the context and conditions
of the practicum, the virtualization of the teachinglearning process during the practicum in pandemics,
and the development of the participants’ professional
and pedagogical knowledge. The second part of the
questionnaire included three open-ended questions
aimed at preservice teachers expanding on some of
the ideas in the closed questions and adding information on the interactions through the process with all
the intervening agents: cooperating teachers, pupils,
and university supervisors. This instrument was validated using experts’ judgment before its application.
The analysis of the first part of the questionnaire was
performed through descriptive statistics aided by SPSS
statistical software. The second part was analyzed
through content analysis, aided by the qualitative
analysis software Atlas.ti v.7.5.4.
Participants
A convenience sampling procedure was used to
select the participants in this study. Except for one
group of subjects who graduated at the end of 2020, all
other participants, aged 21 to 25, were still undergoing
online progressive practicum experiences at different
levels and attending courses simultaneously. For
example, 10 participants completed their professional
56
practicum online during the second semester in 2020;
19 were undergoing their professional practicum; and 12
completed their fourth early teaching practicum during
the first semester in 2021, totaling 42 participants.
Participants were informed about the research aims,
agreed to participate voluntarily, and expressed their
written consent in a Google Form before answering
the questionnaire. Their anonymity was protected
by assigning them identification numbers based on
practicum level; additionally, all names of schools
and educational institutions in which they were
placed for the practicum were anonymized. Finally,
the questionnaire was available online for three weeks.
Results and Discussion
Conditions and Contexts of
the Development of Early
Teaching Practicum and
Professional Practicum of
English Preservice Teachers
Data to answer the first research question were
obtained from the first and second parts of the
questionnaire. The early teaching and professional
practicums developed by the participants took place
online in subsidized schools (47.6%), public schools
(33.3%), private schools (7.1%), and other institutions
(11.9%). The conditions experienced during the
pandemic forced most preservice teachers to take up
more than one class to fulfill the time required for each
practicum, with 50% taking up 2 or 3 classes and 33.3%
teaching only one class. They also had to devote more
time to lessons than usual, even though lessons were
sometimes shorter.
Regarding the contexts and conditions under
which the practicum was developed, 57.2% felt that
coping with curricular disturbances due to different
social issues and learning difficulties increased their selfconfidence. This relates to the diverse issues Chilean
students and citizens have faced since 2019, including
Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Facultad de Ciencias Humanas, Departamento de Lenguas Extranjeras
Teaching Practicums During the Pandemic in an Initial English Teacher Education Program...
student strikes, social outbursts, and the coronavirus
pandemic. These problems caused significant
social and political instability, especially the social
outburst that created severe disruption at all levels
of education and life due to various strikes and riots
that interrupted university and school schedules. This
meant that the practicum experiences planned for
some university levels were shortened or postponed
for later, causing great uncertainty among preservice
teachers. Nevertheless, 52% of informants felt that
their practicum planning was easier despite the
complex situations they faced during their university
studies because they had more time available.
Moreover, the Ministry of Education issued a
plan of subject prioritization for all Chilean schools,
which consisted of giving more importance to certain
subjects over others during the pandemic. English was
maintained in the curriculum, but the lessons were
shortened to one hour and sometimes just half an hour
in certain schools. Some students from subsidized and
public schools had serious difficulties connecting to the
internet. On the other hand, private schools seemed
not to have connection problems.
Characteristics of Virtualization
of Early and Professional
Teaching Practicums in the
Development of Pedagogical
and Professional Knowledge
Data from the third section of the questionnaire
helped determine the practicum virtualization’s
characteristics. According to the participants’
responses, 71.4% had easy internet access, although
some had to ask the university for help to continue
teaching online. In response, they were provided
with modems, tablets, and laptops through the
Students’ Support Unit. Throughout the process,
these preservice teachers realized that virtualization
does not replicate what is done in person (90.4%),
and thus had to adapt their teaching materials
(worksheets, assessment tasks, video capsules) to
the virtual platforms and applications available
(Peardeck, Nearpod, Mentimeter). Despite this,
85.7% of the participants answered that virtualization
helped develop a collaborative relationship with the
cooperating teachers during the virtual meetings
because they had to discuss planning and materials
and receive feedback.
Concerning the development of pedagogical
knowledge, the virtual programs allowed participants
to develop their digital skills in such a way that they
improved their use of ICTs, and they were able to select
the best ones for their effectiveness in learning (90.4%).
Moreover, they assessed the process positively, with
76.2% expressing that it was gratifying to note that
the planning of their practicum easily “translated”
the objectives and class contents into efficient virtual
activities for their students, according to the objectives
expected in English.
On the other hand, 83.3% of the participants
asserted that the pandemic made them witness a
great educational disruption, understood as social
distancing, almost zero inter-student communication,
and difficult communication with their students and
some cooperating teachers. Consequently, most agreed
that the pandemic seriously affected their students’
interest and performance (88%). This is consistent
with views about the major disadvantages of online
education, which include the loss of empathy, contact,
emotion, and quality (Cassany, 2021). Although
learning online can be very effective, Cassany (2021)
claims that learning increases significantly in faceto-face scenarios. Furthermore, 81% noticed that for
pupils, there was unequal access to the internet and
virtual learning platforms, which seriously affected their
learning achievements. As a result, 64.2% thought it
was difficult to develop a reliable virtual evaluation
system in their practicum, and it was difficult to
emphasize some activities (e.g., cooperative learning,
guided discussion) during the practicum (80.9%).
Profile: Issues Teach. Prof. Dev., Vol. 25 No. 2, Jul-Dec, 2023. ISSN 1657-0790 (printed) 2256-5760 (online). Bogotá, Colombia. Pages 49-64
57
Ormeño & Rosas
Concerning the professional aspects, 88.1% of the
participants felt that their practicum performance
during 2020–2021 ser ved to demonstrate the
commitment with which they developed their
pedagogical duties, and 88% felt that they were able to
verify that they had developed the necessary attributes
to perform or to achieve their set objectives throughout
the program. Finally, they were satisfied with their
practicum since their skills and qualities allowed them
to attain achievements and created confidence in their
performance (76.1%).
The results above make it clear that the leap from
in-person to online teaching also imposed challenges
on these preservice teachers, who could be regarded
as digital natives or, in the words of Cassany (2021),
“digital residents”; that is, those who have learned
online and have internet integrated into their daily lives,
mostly in asynchronous ways. This is a characteristic
of distance learning to which teachers appear not to be
fully accustomed, yet all educators should benefit from
updating their knowledge of technology to connect
more naturally to the current educational community.
Main Practicum Strengths,
Weaknesses, and Challenges
During the Pandemic
To identify the main strengths, weaknesses, and
challenges faced by these future teachers of English
in their practicum during the pandemic, we analyzed
the answers to three open-ended questions. We
categorized them considering their interactions with
cooperating teachers, pupils, and supervisors. The
frequency of appearance of each analysis dimension
is summarized in Table 2.
We can observe from Table 2 that, in general, the
number of weaknesses and challenges was quite similar
in terms of frequencies, while the number of strengths
appeared slightly higher. The 7th and 9th-semester
groups seemed to have more issues relating to the
students they taught during the practicum. In the
Table 2. Occurrence of Dimensions Assessed
58
7th
semester
9th
semester
Graduates
(2020)
Total
Weaknesses relating to cooperating
teachers
8
14
7
29
Weaknesses relating to their students
16
11
9
36
Weaknesses relating to the supervisors
4
3
2
9
Social/psychological challenges
3
8
8
19
Structural-technological challenges
6
16
7
29
Pedagogical challenges
5
15
5
25
Strengths relating to cooperating
teachers
4
14
7
25
Strengths relating to students
4
14
7
25
Strengths relating to supervisors
8
13
7
28
Total
dimensions
74
73
85
Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Facultad de Ciencias Humanas, Departamento de Lenguas Extranjeras
Teaching Practicums During the Pandemic in an Initial English Teacher Education Program...
case of those who graduated in 2020, relating to their
students at school was not reported as a prevalent
issue, possibly because the experience gained
throughout the early and progressive practicum
contributed positively to that aspect. Comments
related to weaknesses with their cooperating teachers
were higher among the 9th-semester group, who were
undergoing the professional practicum, the last and
most comprehensive one, as this involves being totally
in charge of teaching the lessons. This group also
identified more challenges in the process, particularly
regarding structural-technological and pedagogical
areas, consistent with exerting more autonomy and
control over the whole teaching and learning process.
The same group highlighted more strengths in their
interactions with all cooperating teachers, students,
and supervisors.
In terms of weaknesses, a closer look at the answers
given by the participwants allowed us to categorize
these, as shown in Table 3.
Concerning the relationships with their cooperating teachers, most preservice teachers complained
about the lack of time to communicate and receive
feedback. Much of this can be explained by the ERT
and learning processes (Sepulveda-Escobar & Morrison, 2020) that, in most cases, forced cooperating
teachers to duplicate lessons and add additional time
to their workload, leaving them with very tight agendas (Cassany, 2021) to fit in feedback sessions for their
preservice teachers. Similarly, the preservice teachers
from the study also had tight agendas, as the practicum
was done amid a series of other courses which ran in
parallel with their curriculum. Concerning weaknesses
related to their students, the main ones point to the
lack of interaction caused by irregular and unstable
Internet access, which prevented them from using their
cameras and microphones, significantly reducing preservice teachers’ interactions with their students (König
et al., 2020). Regarding weaknesses with supervisors,
they mostly related to time constraints that reduced
meeting possibilities and online support, which preservice teachers felt was a significant source of anxiety in
some cases. This is because supervision is both essential
and valuable (Baird & Mollen, 2019). When supervised
online, preservice teachers reported a strong feeling of
uncertainty concerning the focus and manner of the
supervision, suggesting a preference for more directive
supervision (Bailey, 2006).
Table 3. Weaknesses in Interactions With Different Agents of the Practicum
Weaknesses related to
their cooperating teachers
Weaknesses related to
students
1.
Lack of time and coordination to communicate and give
feedback
1.
Lack of interaction with students
(due to little or no use of camera
and microphone)
2.
The workload for preservice
teachers
2.
Students’ difficulty connecting to
online sessions
3.
Difficulty using applications or platforms for online
teaching for both cooperating teachers and preservice
teachers
3.
Class interaction patterns limited by online teaching
4. Disinterest and lack of student
motivation
Weaknesses related to
supervisors
1.
Lack of time to interact and
give timely feedback
2.
Lack of timely correction of lesson plans
3.
Difficulty in coordinating
supervision
4. Insufficient practicum meetings to solve doubts
5.
Supervisors are not aware
of the different practicum
contexts
Profile: Issues Teach. Prof. Dev., Vol. 25 No. 2, Jul-Dec, 2023. ISSN 1657-0790 (printed) 2256-5760 (online). Bogotá, Colombia. Pages 49-64
59
Ormeño & Rosas
On the other hand, challenges identified by the
preservice teachers in the practicum were categorized
into socio-psychological challenges, technologicalstructural challenges, and pedagogical challenges (see
Table 4). The first relates to issues involving personality
and social relationships and preservice teachers’
pressures concerning them. The second relates to the
challenges their degree of expertise imposes when
Table 4. Challenges Identified in the Practicum
Socio-psychological
challenges
Technological structural
challenges
1. Ability to adapt to online
mode
1. Adapting to online teaching
and learning
1. Designing significant quantities of
pedagogical/virtual material
2. Flexibility to change
2. Adapting materials to specific
schools’ formats (e.g., compressing files)
2. Diversifying the use of applications to
maintain the students’ interest
3. Tolerance to frustration
4. Overcoming the fear of the
unknown (Practicum V)
5. Controlling emotions to
perform well
6. Becoming aware that students may have emotional
problems affecting their
performance
7. Working as a team with the
cooperating teacher, supervisor, and peers in a virtual
mode
8. Effectively using time in
meetings with supervisors
and coordinator
9. Maintaining a pleasant and
cordial relationship with the
students
10. Maintaining a cordial
relationship with the cooperating teachers
3. Creating video tutorials
4. Creating materials for online
learning
5. Using technological tools in
general
6. Motivating students to learn
through ICT
7. Learning to use new tools/
applications for learning
8. Being attentive to messages to
correct lesson plans (stay permanently connected)
Pedagogical challenges
3. Planning activities for online teaching
4. Effectively managing class time
5. Developing the national curriculum
learning outcomes for the English
subject
6. Prioritizing content for online
teaching
7. Assessing online learning
8. Learning to use applications for online
teaching
9. Developing autonomous work in
online learning
10. Developing English language skills,
especially oral production
11. Using a variety of language learning
strategies
12. Adapting English use to students’ language level.
13. Adapting teaching materials to online
time (60 minutes)
14. Creating material and activities to
encourage students’ participation
15. Meeting practicum and academic
demands
60
Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Facultad de Ciencias Humanas, Departamento de Lenguas Extranjeras
Teaching Practicums During the Pandemic in an Initial English Teacher Education Program...
using technological tools for teaching and learning.
The last category relates to issues concerning the
various types of knowledge to be developed by
teachers, as described by Shulman (1987).
Regarding the socio-psychological challenges identified, the pandemic added significant
stress among the participating preservice teachers
(MacIntyre et al., 2020). In this case, the challenges
are mostly related to controlling emotions to perform
well and maintain a cordial relationship with their
learners, the cooperating teachers, and the support
they might give the former and receive from the latter.
As for technological structural challenges, these highlight the need to learn how to use new applications for
teaching and learning and creating materials for the
process. Together with this, motivating the learners to
learn through technology might appear as a paradox,
as these generations are supposed to have grown up
surrounded by technology. Perhaps the explanation
may be that they use technology primarily for playing
or relating to others through social media but not for
educational purposes.
Consistently with their capacity as preservice
teachers, the category with the highest number of
challenges relates to pedagogical issues. Within
these, the online modality appeared to permeate at
least five challenges related to planning, teaching,
and assessing learning. Additionally, adapting the
target language (English) to match the circumstances
and needs of their students appeared as a significant
challenge.
Besides the weaknesses and challenges discussed
above, the research participants also identified several
strengths in their interactions with their cooperating
teachers, students, and university supervisors. These
are summarized in Table 5.
Table 5. Strengths in Interactions With Different Agents of the Practicum
Strengths with cooperating
teachers
1. Support and guidance in the
design of didactic material during early practices
2. Support and guidance in the
selection of topics for their
students
3. Cooperating teachers valuing
the use of applications for online
teaching
4. Effective communication and
interaction through email, video
calls, and WhatsApp
5. Fast and effective online
feedback
Strengths with students
1. Availability of class recordings for students who did not
attend lessons or for those in
need of reinforcement
2. Monitoring student participation and learning through
applications (Nearpod, Pear
Deck)
3. Permanent participation
through the microphone and
chat between the preservice
teacher and students willing
to learn
4. Good disposition, enthusiasm,
and motivation on the part of
some students
Strengths with supervisors
1. Training in educational applications to improve online teaching
during the practicum
2. Existence of standard criteria
between supervisors and the
practicum coordinator
3. Quick and effective communication with supervisors and
coordinators
4. Timely feedback for lesson planning and practicum supervision
5. Advice on ideas and lesson
activities
5. Personalized feedback through
ICT
Profile: Issues Teach. Prof. Dev., Vol. 25 No. 2, Jul-Dec, 2023. ISSN 1657-0790 (printed) 2256-5760 (online). Bogotá, Colombia. Pages 49-64
61
Ormeño & Rosas
Strengths regarding the interactions with
cooperating teachers relate to the support these
provided preservice teachers with, especially concerning
guidance and support in choosing topics and material
design for lessons. In this sense, cooperating teachers
valued using applications for teaching and learning,
which were mainly new. Strengths relating to the
participants’ students highlighted the availability of
lesson recordings and monitoring possibilities provided
by technology and the excellent disposition and
participation of some pupils who were always willing
to learn. Finally, regarding their supervisors, these
preservice teachers valued training in using applications
they did not know previously and standard criteria used
in supervision. They also valued the advice received to
improve online lessons and activities. These findings
highlight their preference for the directive supervision
option (Bailey, 2006) and their still-developing capacity
for autonomous work.
Conclusion
This study sought to analyze the impact of online
practicum in developing pedagogical and professional
knowledge for a group of English preservice teachers of
English in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. The
virtualization process made these preservice teachers
fully aware that what is done in person cannot be fully
replicated in a virtual environment, as there was little
interaction with students, reduced time for online
lessons, lower academic requirements, and difficulties
in assessing students’ learning. Thus, they had to adapt
their teaching and teaching material to use several
virtual applications to succeed. In this way, virtualization
supported their interactions in the practicum process.
Regarding the contexts and conditions in which the
practicum happened, respondents felt that successfully
managing curricular disturbances caused by various
social issues and learning difficulties boosted their
self-confidence. The pandemic has demonstrated that
the educational community’s conditions of uncertainty
62
(Vancell, 2021) and resource scarcity might affect a
teacher’s professional competence in the cognitive and
affective domains, in their pedagogical choices, and
those of other critical actors in the process (Carrillo &
Flores, 2020; Fořtová et al., 2021).
Regarding pedagogical knowledge development,
responses from these preservice teachers indicate
the development of at least four kinds of pedagogical
knowledge from Shulman’s model (1987): general
pedagogical knowledge, content knowledge, educational
context knowledge, and knowledge about students and
their characteristics. The discourse in the participants’
answers to the open questions showed an incipient
development of professional knowledge, as Hargreaves
and Fullan (2012) described, since they used specialized
language and appeared to become aware of their capacity
and the development of the necessary skills for their
future performance.
Three points worth highlighting include that, first,
virtuality does not replace face-to-face work. Secondly, it
should be clear that this is an instance of ERT, a modality temporarily adopted to cope with the circumstances
brought about by the pandemic, but which will not
replace in-person education (Acción Educar, 2020;
Cassany, 2021; Díaz-Maggioli, 2021). Finally, virtuality
opens the way to complement in-person education by
offering the possibility of facing an emergency, making
third-party knowledge available to us in the cloud, and
implementing new teaching-learning methodologies.
This has implications for institutions and teacher education programs. One is the need to produce and circulate
official documents that acknowledge the possibility of
doing the preservice teaching practicum online or in
hybrid modalities and provide specific guidelines and
suggestions derived from the experience.
This study is limited as it analyzed the preservice
teachers’ perspective about online practicums in one
English teacher education program from a public,
regional university in Chile. More research about online
replacements for face-to-face practicum in other initial
Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Facultad de Ciencias Humanas, Departamento de Lenguas Extranjeras
Teaching Practicums During the Pandemic in an Initial English Teacher Education Program...
teacher education programs, especially in the context of
ERT and learning, is needed to assess their effectiveness,
full potential, and drawbacks. Future research should also
consider the perspectives of the other participants in the
process (i.e., pupils, cooperating teachers, and supervisors).
supervision: Testing a revised framework and assessing
occurrence. The Counseling Psychologist, 42(4), 434–472.
https://doi.org/10.1177/0011000013508656
Fořtová, N., Sedláčková, J., & Tůma, F. (2021). “And my screen
wouldn’t share”: EFL student-teachers’ perceptions of ICT
in online teaching practice and online teaching. Íkala,
References
Acción Educar. (2020, April). La importancia de las clases
presenciales. https://bit.ly/3BobqWf
Revista de Lenguaje y Cultura, 26(3), 513–529. https://
doi.org/10.17533/udea.ikala.v26n3a03
Freeman, D. (1989). Teacher training, development and
Bailey, K. M. (2006). Language teacher supervision: A case-
decision making: A model of teaching and related
based approach. Cambridge University Press. https://doi.
strategies for language teacher education. TESOL
org/10.1017/CBO9780511667329
Quarterly, 23(1), 27–45. https://doi.org/10.2307/3587506
Baird, B., & Mollen, D. (2019). The internship, practicum
Hargreaves, A., & Fullan, M. (2012). Professional capital: Trans-
and field placement handbook. A guide for the helping
forming teaching in every school. Teachers College Press.
professions (8th ed.). Taylor and Francis. https://doi.
Hodges, C., Moore, S., Lockee, B., Trust, T., & Bond, A.
org/10.4324/9781351067850
Barahona, M. (2014). Exploring the curriculum of second language
teacher education (SLTE) in Chile: A case study. Perspectiva
Educacional: Formación de Profesores, 53(2), 45–67. https://
doi.org/10.4151/07189729-Vol.53-Iss.2-Art.261
Bozkurt, A., & Sharma, R. C. (2020). Emergency remote teaching
in a time of global crisis due to coronavirus pandemic. Asian
Journal of Distance Education, 15(1), i–vi.
(2020, March 27). The difference between emergency
remote teaching and online learning. Educause Review.
https://bit.ly/3TWye7E
Johnson, A. P. (2017). Teaching strategies for all teachers:
Enhancing the most significant variable. Rowman &
Littlefield.
Kidd, W., & Murray, J. (2020). The Covid-19 pandemic and
its effects on teacher education in England: How teacher
Carrillo, C., & Flores, M. A. (2020). COVID-19 and teacher
educators moved practicum learning online. European
education: A literature review of online teaching and learning
Journal of Teacher Education, 43(4), 542–558. https://
practices. European Journal of Teacher Education, 43(4),
doi.org/10.1080/02619768.2020.1820480
466–487. https://doi.org/10.1080/02619768.2020.1821184
König, J., Jäger-Biela, D., & Glutsck, N. (2020). Adapting
Cassany, D. (2021). Todos los docentes estamos agotados del número
to online teaching during COVID-19 school closure:
de horas que pasamos pegados a la pantalla [Interview]. Web
Teacher education and teacher competence effects among
del Maestro, WMCMF. https://bit.ly/3QBbmrw
early career teachers in Germany. European Journal of
Clarke, L. (2013). Virtual learning environments in teacher
education: A journal, a journey. Technology, Pedagogy
and Education, 22(1), 121–131. https://doi.org/10.1080/147
5939X.2012.731632
Díaz-Maggioli, G. [Programa de inglés PUCV]. (2021, August
Teacher Education, 43(4), 608–622. https://doi.org/10.1
080/02619768.2020.1809650
Ladany, N., Mori, Y., & Mehr, K. E. (2013). Effective and
ineffective supervision. The Counseling Psychologist, 41(1),
28–47. https://doi.org/10.1177/0011000012442648
2). Webinar “Digital learning and teaching: Promoting
Lara-Diaz, M. A. (2019). A TESOL practicum in Chile. In
students’ autonomous learning” [Video]. YouTube. https://
A. Cirocki, I. Madyarov, & L. Baecher (Eds.), Current
www.youtube.com/watch?v=saIToqUMMXM&t=3332s
perspectives on the TESOL practicum. Educational
Ellis, M. V., Berger, L., Hanus, A. E., Ayala, E. E., Swords, B.
A., & Siembor, M. (2014). Inadequate and harmful clinical
linguistics (vol. 40, pp. 67–86). Springer. https://doi.
org/10.1007/978-3-030-28756-6_4
Profile: Issues Teach. Prof. Dev., Vol. 25 No. 2, Jul-Dec, 2023. ISSN 1657-0790 (printed) 2256-5760 (online). Bogotá, Colombia. Pages 49-64
63
Ormeño & Rosas
MacIntyre, P. D., Gregersen, T., & Mercer, S. (2020). Language
Sepulveda-Escobar, P., & Morrison, A. (2020). Online teaching
teachers’ coping strategies during the Covid-19 conversion
placement during the COVID-19 pandemic in Chile:
to online teaching: Correlations with stress, wellbeing
Challenges and opportunities. European Journal of Teacher
and negative emotions. System, 94, 102352. https://doi.
Education, 43(4), 587–607. https://doi.org/10.1080/026197
org/10.1016/j.system.2020.102352
Malderez, A., & Wedell, M. (2007). Teaching teachers: Processes
and practices. Continuum.
Morrison, A., & Sepulveda-Escobar, P. (2021). The role of
68.2020.1820981
Shulman, L. (1986). Those who understand: Knowledge growth
in teaching. Educational Researcher, 15(2), 4–14. https://doi.
org/10.3102/0013189x015002004
technology during the COVID-19 pandemic: The case
Shulman, L. (1987). Knowledge and teaching: Foundations of
of EFL online teaching placements. English as a Foreign
the new reform. Harvard Educational Review, 57(1), 1–23.
Language International Journal, 25(5), 47–63. https://doi.
https://doi.org/10.17763/haer.57.1.j463w79r56455411
org/10.56498/69122021
Stephens, E. C., & Curwood, J. S. (2022). Teacher education in
Özüdoğru, F. (2021). Turkish preservice teachers’ experiences
times of disruption: Lessons learned from teaching and
with emergency remote teaching: A phenomenological
learning in Australian universities during the COVID-19
study. Issues in Educational Research, 31(1), 166–187.
pandemic. In R. Y. Chan, K. Bista, & R. M. Allen (Eds.),
Pérez-López, E., Vázquez-Atochero, A., & Cambero-Rivero,
Online teaching and learning during Covid-19. Routledge.
S. (2021). Educación a distancia en tiempos de COVID-
https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003125921-19
19: Análisis desde la perspectiva de los estudiantes
Talvitie, U., Peltokallio, L., & Mannisto, P. (2000). Student
universitarios. Revista Iberoamericana de Educación
teachers’ views about their relationships with university
a Distancia, 24(1), 331–350. https://doi.org/10.5944/
supervisors, cooperating teachers and peer student teachers.
Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research, 44(1), 79–88.
ried.24.1.27855
Rosas, M., Ormeño, V., & Ruiz-Aguilar, C. (2020). Teaching
https://doi.org/10.1080/713696662
practicum and the development of professional and
UNESCO. (2020, August). La educación en tiempos de la
pedagogical knowledge. Journal of Applied Linguistics and
pandemia de COVID-19 (Informe Covid-19 CEPAL-
Professional Practice, 15(1), 67–90. https://doi.org/10.1558/
UNESCO). https://bit.ly/3Qr1zo1
Vancell, J. (2021). The COVID-19 pandemic and its effects on
jalpp.35061
Schön, D. A. (1987). Educating the reflective practitioner: Toward
the preservice teacher practicum: A literature review [Paper
a new design for teaching and learning in the professions.
presentation]. 11th International Conference: The Future of
Jossey-Bass.
Education. https://bit.ly/3qxsTGl
About the Authors
Verónica Ormeño holds a PhD in Applied Linguistics from the University of Birmingham, UK, and an English
language teaching degree from Universidad Austral de Chile. She is an associate professor and teacher educator at
Universidad de Los Lagos, Chile. Her research interests include initial teacher education, teacher cognition, applied
linguistics, and discourse analysis.
Minerva Rosas received her PhD in Linguistics from Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso, Chile. She is
an associate professor and teacher educator at Universidad de Los Lagos, Chile. Her research interests include teacher
cognition and initial teacher education, applied linguistics, reading comprehension in L2, and academic writing in L2.
64
Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Facultad de Ciencias Humanas, Departamento de Lenguas Extranjeras