Mary L. Slade, Professor of Early Childhood Education, Towson University | mslade@towson.edu

Lisa Buchy, Director, Early Childhood Policy and Systems and Assistant Research Scientist, IDEALS Institute, Johns Hopkins University; formerly Lecturer of Early Childhood Education, Towson University | buchy1@jhu.edu

     Higher education faculty were suddenly thrust into remote teaching mid-semester in March 2020 due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Faculty quickly adapted course pedagogies to align with alternate platforms for course delivery without the possession of knowledge, skills, or experience in virtual learning. Thus, one of the unexpected consequences of the pandemic included the inventive approaches faculty used to modify existing course pedagogy. Even the most challenging pedagogies were translated to alternate platforms during remote learning in the name of effective teaching at Towson University (TU).

What?

     As faculty  from the Department of Early Childhood Education, we sought to convert a traditional service-learning experience to a virtual platform. The purpose of the service-learning experience was to promote the transformation of course content to practice with young children in preschool through grade 3. The students in the course planned an integrated arts (music, dance, movement, visual arts, three-dimensional art, play, storytelling, or dramatic arts) literacy or social studies activity with a focus on diverse, equitable, and inclusive children’s literature.

     When the course meets face to face, the service-learning experience takes place in real-time in child development centers and preschools. However, during the pandemic, the students video-recorded their activity for young children. After posting the videos online, community partners who were identified through the university office of Community Engagement and Social Responsibility, shared the recorded activities with teachers and families for educational purposes.

     Following the return to campus, we found continued challenges with the integrated arts course in implementing a service-learning project during an ongoing pandemic. Primarily, concerns about staff and children’s safety precluded on-site visits to some settings for young children. Therefore, the TU faculty used service-learning via virtual and face-to-face teaching to provide all students an opportunity to engage in reflective practice.

So What?

     Effective educators are critical for realizing the vision of our profession that every young child, birth to age 8, has equitable access to high quality learning and care environments (NAEYC, 2019). To achieve this vision, early childhood educators must demonstrate the ability to effectively support the development, learning, and well-being of every young child. Further, educators have a responsibility to work as partners with diverse families to support their children’s education.

     As education personnel preparation faculty, we ask ourselves how do we best build our students’ understanding of diversity and equity in early childhood classrooms? The response is twofold. We must prepare our students to not only teach effectively in a diverse and inclusive classroom environment, but also to use arts integration to support diverse student needs. We strive to prepare educators who are culturally responsive and who value and serve diverse students and families well.

     Furthermore, it is critical that faculty apply effective pedagogy to transform students’ knowledge acquisition into real-world practice. In essence, to assure that our students sustain inclusive classrooms, we must provide opportunities for reflective practice in coursework. Pre-service educators use reflective thinking to translate the knowledge and skills learned in the university classroom to the practice of teaching. Reflective practice involves higher order thinking applied to real-world applications of knowledge and skills learned; thus, teacher competence results in a deeper level of transformative learning (Slade, Burnham, & Waters, 2018).

     Traditional field experiences that promote reflective practice exist in later professional program semesters, but not in the preceding semesters. Therefore, reflective practice must be sought in alternative formats during pre-professional semesters. The virtual real-world application is achieved through community engagement between the university, schools, and families using service-learning pedagogy. This form of experiential learning supports student engagement in the service of community-based needs via structured opportunities designed to promote student learning and development through reflective practice.  Reflection is a key concept of service-learning (Jacoby, 1996).

     Service-learning extends traditional lecture to a more meaningful learning experience through authentic engagement with the community. Students and faculty prefer instructional methods that are engaging and extend learning outcomes beyond knowledge acquisition alone. A trend has emerged for faculty who have moved away from lecture to more engaging pedagogies. A thorough evaluation of the use of this pedagogy in virtual or remote courses is warranted.

     Within teacher preparation programs, there are multiple benefits of effective service-learning pedagogy that support reflective practice. Specifically, the benefits of sustainable virtual service-learning include: (1) The provision of reflective practice without the complications of field placements or prior to their existence in a program of study; (2) Student access to environments that are not readily accessible; (3) Enhanced access for students with limited resources to participate in service-learning opportunities; (4) Increased student learning through reflective practice afforded to students via service-learning; (5) Increased student field experiences given a teacher shortage that diminishes the number of available classroom mentors for preservice students; and (6) Student access to diverse and inclusive educational settings that enhance students’ development as effective educators.

Now What?

     As faculty return to teaching on campus following the initial move to remote learning, much consideration is being given to which aspects of the remote learning experience will carry forward in future course offerings. Although our campus is committed to face-to-face learning platforms, many faculty found benefits to some or many aspects of teaching online and blended courses. For the two faculty in early childhood education, the viability of virtual service-learning experiences holds promise for this course and possibly others given the potential benefits to teacher preparation programming.

     Currently, we are conducting a year-long study of the impact of the virtual service-learning experience on student learning. The guiding research question asks whether virtual service-learning will support transformative learning and the deepening of students’ knowledge and skills through the application of higher-order thinking. Some students will participate in face-to-face teaching while others’ experience is virtual; an average of 90 pre-service students from the university will be impacted by the experience each semester. At the end of the academic year, the faculty will analyze students’ written reflections of their teaching practice to determine the efficacy of the virtual service-learning experience and to develop a list of diverse children’s literature. The use of formative and summative evaluation (following both fall and spring semesters) will provide opportunities for adjustments or modifications in the project implementation between fall and spring semesters. The ultimate outcome will be the determination of the efficacy of a virtual service-learning experience in providing transformative learning in the pre-early childhood integrated arts course. Not only will the results of the study address the practicality of virtual service-learning for the two faculty involved in the inquiry, but will also support many other higher education faculty who use service-learning pedagogy in their pre-professional courses.

     The implications for using virtual service-learning in lieu of or in addition to face-to-face real-world experiences exist for many higher education faculty. Several trends in higher education suggest a change in the needs and circumstances of higher education students. Foremost, faculty must be prepared for the necessity of returning to remote teaching during an ongoing pandemic. Similarly, an increasing number of students are showing interest in alternative virtual learning platforms. Additionally, recruitment, retention, and matriculation of non-traditional students may be enhanced by remote learning opportunities that address the unique circumstances of their daily lives. Finally, in professional degree programs, faculty move students from the classroom directly into field-based internships. A preemptive virtual experience offers guided practice under the complete oversight of the course faculty versus field-based supervisors and mentors.

References

Jacoby, B. (1996). Service-Learning in Higher Education: Concepts and Practices. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

NAEYC. (2019).  Advancing equity in early childhood education [Position statement of the National Association for the Education of Young Children]. Retrieved April 10, 2022 from https://www.naeyc.org/sites/default/files/globally-shared/downloads/PDFs/resources/position-statements/advancingequitypositionstatement.pdf

Slade, M., Burnham, T., & Waters, T. (2018). A study of the impact of reflective practice on teachers to meeting the needs of impoverished students. Education in a Democracy: An NNER Journal, 10, 29-44. Retrieved June 15, 2022 from https://nnerpartnerships.org/wp-content/uploads/NNER-Journal-2018-final.pdf