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Over the past two decades, K-12 online learning opportunities have increased gradually (Kennedy & Archambault, 2012; Cirillo, Larochelle, Arbaugh, & Bieda, 2020). As more and more K-12 students are involved in online learning experiences, it is expected that more qualified online teachers are required. However, many teachers are placed in this virtual role without any formal training and are expected to learn as they go by attending one-off professional development sessions and brief workshops (Rice & Dawley, 2009). It is no surprise that these experiences are not enough for developing efficient online teachers (Archambault, 2011). In addition, teacher preparation programs have not been very active to include content courses or field training for online teaching. As such, research is still developing on online teacher preparation programs and best practice benchmarks are still emerging (Cirillo et al., 2020; Eisenbach, Greathouse, & Acquaviva, 2020).
In Spring of 2020 and in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, all face-to-face classes worldwide transitioned online in March. This unforeseen change resulted in major shifts in class structure for theorical as well as practical courses. Consequently, the current pandemic has required changes in teacher preparation programs including field experience, which occurs mainly in K-12 settings. As the pandemic continues, it is becoming evident that the need for K-12 online teaching and training will also continue. Therefore, teacher preparation programs must recognize this need and prepare preservice teachers for the learning context of the future. This pandemic has resulted in a rare opportunity to scrutinize, evaluate, and question the state of education norms including teacher preparation programs.
Therefore, more inquiry is required on how to get preservice teachers ready for this new modern environment as well as to better understand the benefits of face-to-face vs. online instruction. As a result, this paper aims to examine the perceptions of pre-service teachers in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) regarding their virtual practicum placement during the COVID-19 pandemic. This paper will also explore the effectiveness of the virtual practicum and its impact on developing preservice teachers’ teaching practices, classroom management skills and the use of online resources.