Teaching and learning during the Covid-19 pandemic: University students’ perspective on phase 3

Whereas there is a growing body of research focusing on the university educational activities during the first phase of the Covid-19 pandemic that started abruptly in the spring 2020, the next phase (August-December 2020) is still quite under-studied. Throughout this phase, Sapienza, as many other Italian universities, implemented a teaching approach by combining in-person and remote attendance for many of the lessons. As a result of this arrangement, a quote of students (with the professor) was physically in the classroom, whereas the other students were connected in streaming. The present work explores the students’ perspective on benefits and problems of such a new technological choreography and educational arrangement. Their suggestions may contribute to plan new post-pandemic blended scenarios.

Online learning in kindergarten during Covid-19: Teachers’ experience and perception in Italy

Before pandemic, online learning was not widespread in the Italian educational context with preschoolers. This study investigates how a sample of 143 Italian kindergarten teachers describe their experiences and perception in conducting online learning during Covid-19 lockdown. Findings revealed that collaboration among teachers seems to be one of the most important elements to guarantee quality online learning, as well as the emotional and relational dimensions that involve kindergarten teachers and children with their families as “mediator”, especially with children with Special Educational Needs (SEN). Although this study was conducted in an emergency period, these findings may have important implications in online learning with preschoolers also during the post pandemic period.

Distance learning in Higher Education during the first pandemic lockdown: The point of view of students with special educational needs

The study investigates the perspective on distance learning (DL) of a sample of students with disability. Participants (N= 198; 62% females) completed an online questionnaire. The results highlight that students perceive both advantages and barriers, which vary as a function of the type of disability. This seems to suggest that DL potentials should be evaluated in relation to the specific vulnerabilities and educational needs associated with each type of disability, which might be accomplished by adopting the Universal Design for Learning framework. Also, it may be that the impact of DL depends on the discipline as well as on the teachers’ digital competences, which can make a great difference in the quality of the online lesson and in the overall didactic experience of students with SEN.

Children’s digitally mediated perezhivanie/enchantment in backyard excursions to “nature”

We examine children’s digitally mediated excursions to “nature” in their backyards when Covid-19 prevented environmental excursions. The data consists of young children’s accounts of their backyard excursions recorded on digital devices and posted online to Seesaw. We use sociocultural theory to analyse the co-agency of child and the digital device, the unit of analysis being “a child-using-a-digital-device”. To theorise experience, we deploy Vygotsky’s concept of perezhivanie and Bennett’s notion of enchantment. The analysis of posts to Seesaw revealed children’s experience of vivid, emotionally engaging moments with “nature”, and evidence of an ethic of care. We conclude that emotionally engaging pedagogies based on perezhivanie/enchantment are important in addressing current environmental crises.

Italian parents’ perception about learning practices and educational effectiveness of remote schooling during the first lockdown

The abrupt interruption of face-to-face educational activities imposed by the Italian Government in response to the Covid-19 emergency required a rapid switch to remote schooling to guarantee continuity in education. This paper explores the family’s perception about the organization of remote schooling and its impact on learning. In particular, the authors investigated the technology used and the strategies adopted by the teachers to face the challenges posed by this rapid change in the educational paradigm through an online survey carried out between May and June 2020. More than 19,000 families answered the survey for a total of 32,000 children, highlighting a favorable evaluation from the parents. The analyses confirm that several factors linked to the technology used and instructional learning design signif icantly impacted the parents’ evaluation.

Performing arts as a tool for university education during a pandemic: Moving from an in vivo to an in vitro modality

aper analyses how a course on improvisation and collective creation in engineering addressed to master’s students in Switzerland moved online. The course offers an experience in the field of performing arts, through embodied and situated activities, and the opportunity to reflect on the process of collective creation, a fundamental aspect of engineering practice often neglected in engineering training. The restrictions imposed by the 2020 pandemic forced its migration to an online format. We explore whether it is possible to maintain online a pedagogical proposal centered on embodied and face-to-face interaction, and what such a course might bring to the students. Using data collected during Spring 2020 (especially a focus group, video-recorded feedbacks and reflective diaries written by the students), we analyze the continuities and discontinuities between the two modalities. We show how the socio-material transformations im plied by the online interactions altered the interactions taking place, discuss the resultant opportunities and novelties offered by the online modality. We highlight that the apparent success of this migration to an online format overshadows the strong collective efforts needed from both students and teachers to maintain the key features of the course (playful experimentation, being inspired by others, horizontality of relations, trust, collective practice, improvisation).