Home and away ‘hybrid practicum’. Pre-service teachers experiencing the ‘class-academy’ programme during the ‘COVID-19 year’ in Israel

Abstract

This article examines the contribution of the ‘classacademy’ programme to the practical training of preservice teachers in Israel during the COVID–19 pandemic. Based on a sample of 51 graduates from 19 colleges and six universities who completed their studies in June 2020, the study used a questionnaire and indepth interviews to describe students’ experience in an academic year with a ‘hybrid’ home and away practicum: a regular first semester and a second semester with remote learning and teaching. The findings point to challenges, achievements, and complexities. Despite the situation, students perceived their practical experience and the contribution of the ‘class academy’ programme to their teacher training in a positive light. They saw training teachers and pedagogical instructors as important for their training and viewed the school system as an important support both emotionally and professionally. Students’ peer groups helped provide the support mechanism for creating a sense of ‘togetherness’ in a state of uncertainty. The main conclusion is that thanks to the solid foundations laid by the ‘class academy’ programme in the first semester, the experience of remote teaching and learning greatly contributed to students’ professional coping with the teaching challenges during the emergency.