Pre-service Teachers Reflection on their Undergraduate Educational Research Experience through Online Instructional Delivery

Abstract

Undergraduate research as a high-impact educational practice aims to develop the personal and professional growth of preservice teachers and prepares them to be effective practitioners in the field. With the sudden shift in instructional delivery, a dearth of studies focusing on students’ experiences in conducting research in the online learning environment is observed. This study examined the experiences of 80 preservice teachers from a teacher education institution implementing a pure online instructional delivery in conducting educational research through descriptive phenomenology. Their narrative accounts were obtained through their post-assessment reflective journal with seven guide questions and were analyzed using thematic analysis. Their nuances articulated that students' prior knowledge and experiences in research, presence of support groups, availability of learning resources, and perceived benefits were the enabling factors for their learning success. However, there were also challenges along the way such as communication barriers, lack of resources, overlapping responsibilities, and the quality of their output and performance. The presence of a supportive virtual learning environment and online learning community is critical to learning outcomes and the quality of learning experiences.