Distance learning in Early Childhood Education: an approach to the perceptions of future teachers

Abstract

Covid-19 has created new forms and needs of teaching. Since March 2020, Early Childhood Education teachers have been obliged to use distance education. This article makes an approximation to the opinions of Infant Grade students, as they will be professionals who will have to face distance education: they have been asked about their self-perception about the competence, difficulty and need for training to work remotely with students in Early Childhood Education. We have asked them about distance learning via screen, as this modality was mentioned by 5 experts in Early Childhood Education, consulted previously to carry out the questionnaire, as the modality that has brought more difficulty in pandemic-teaching. The online survey consists of three composite variables, each of which is composed of thirteen items. The analysis of the data from this descriptive and exploratory research yields three conclusions: respondents perceive difficulties in carrying out distance learning through the screen in Early Childhood Education, they perceive a lower level of competence than the difficulty, and there is a correspondence between the degree of difficulty and the need for training.