Metaphorical Perceptions Of Teacher Candidates Regarding Distance Education During The Pandemic Period And Post-Pandemic Period

Abstract

Since the beginning of 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic, which started to be frequently observed and forced us to stay at home, has somewhat hindered the complete disruption of our work and educational lives through the use of distance education technologies. Metaphors have been used as a lens to analyze various phenomena such as teachers and education in educational research. This study aims to identify the metaphors used by teacher candidates regarding distance education during and after the pandemic period and to gather information about their perceptions and factors influencing their thinking. The study utilized a basic qualitative research design. The study group consisted of 66 teacher candidates who were taking the "Open and Distance Learning" course in the fall semester of 2022-2023 and who received all of their courses during the pandemic period and some elective courses through distance education in the post-pandemic period. The metaphors were analyzed using content analysis. During the pandemic period, the teacher candidates produced 66 valid metaphors regarding the concept of distance education, which were categorized into two categories: positive and negative. The positive metaphors were grouped under three main themes: education, access, and flexibility. The negative metaphors were grouped under two main themes: access and uncertainty. Similarly, the teacher candidates produced 66 valid metaphors regarding distance education after the pandemic period, which were categorized into two categories: positive and negative. The positive metaphors were grouped under three main themes: education, access, and flexibility. The negative metaphors were grouped under the theme of time loss. It was determined through the analysis of the metaphors developed by the teacher candidates that their perceptions of distance education differed during the pandemic and post-pandemic periods.