Linking theory and practice in teacher training: Pandemic lessons from three countries (Russia, Kazakhstan and Slovakia)

Abstract

The objective of this comparative study devoted to the theoretical and practical training of future teachers (as e.g. French as a foreign language) in the context of Covid-19 is conditioned by the challenge that the pandemic represents for social institutions, by the global trends of the evolution of teacher training, by national priorities in the implementation of professional training in Russia, Kazakhstan, Slovakia as well as by the institutional educational strategies of the universities of the above-mentioned countries (Federal University of Kazan, National University Eurasian named after LN Goumilev and Comenius University of Bratislava). In this article, we analyze the institutional contexts of the training of future French teachers under the conditions of Covid-19 and from the point of view of changes in content and procedural aspects as well as the evaluative component of their professional training. The research priority was to assess the influence of pandemic conditions on the quality of the training of future French teachers and on the degree of training of their teaching skills, as well as to identify and justify a certain number of principles of the future training of French teachers. The study is based on systemic and task-based approaches. Research data was provided by 20 teachers and 44 university students from Russia and Kazakhstan; and by 11 students from Comenius University in Bratislava. The authors performed a reflexive-systematic analysis of educational activity and a qualitative factor analysis of unstructured interviews. The research results indicate the potential of integrating the theoretical and practical training of a future teacher of French in a pandemic environment, respecting a number of principles: 1) modularity; 2) polymodality (multimedia); 3) continuity of the contents of disciplines and practices; 4) dialogue between educational actors; 5) combination of assessment tools from theoretical and practical disciplines. The transition from face-to-face to distance training as well as the presence of gaps in digital teaching constitute a particular challenge in the training of future French teachers. The results of the study can be used for the development of educational programs for the training of French teachers and the implementation of joint research in the field of comparative pedagogy.