Searching for a Model of Remote Early Childhood Education in the Time of the Pandemic: From Teachers’ Experiences

Abstract

Distance education during the COVID-19 pandemic became a necessity that neither teachers nor other participants in the process were prepared for. It was necessary to reframe the education model from “transferring and checking knowledge” to “teaching relations”. The experiences of practitioners attempting to educate young learners using the Internet are the subject of the explorations presented in this paper. Interviews with six early childhood education teachers indicated some significant components that reveal a new model of distance education aimed at the youngest age group. The base layer of this model is the relations between the teacher and students with their families, and peer group relations. Over this base layer is cooperation and building the internal power of the participants, complemented with the topmost component of remote teaching. In the statements of the respondents, distance education of young pupils implies setting goals and rules, appreciation and motivation, learning together and from mistakes, and involving the whole educational environment in the process. The picture of distance education of young pupils provided by the teachers indicates that it is possible in crisis situations but requires attention, good communication, and care for the physical and psychological well-being of the participants in the process.