Teacher Education in Novel Times: Designing Comic Strips to Explore Elementary Learners' Experiences during COVID-19

ABSTRACT

This case study was conducted in Fall 2020 with two Elementary Education pre-service teaching candidates. The goal of the study was to better understand how students in this course developed new insights about teaching during the COVID-19 pandemic through their successful design of comic strip narrative artwork. The students created comic strips depicting the experiences of diverse elementary students during the pandemic, which were displayed in a campus art gallery. Data sources included two focus group interviews, written reflections, participants' final comics from the gallery, and other artifacts. Analysis was framed using Eisner's (1985/2005) concept of 'aesthetic knowing.' Findings regarding the insights the participants developed through this assignment were presented in the following themes pedagogical perspectives, dialoguing, and audience. Conclusions and implications include a call for greater uptake of and research about arts-based teacher education assignments to better prepare candidates to enter the field as agents of change.