Comparison of Picture Book Reading Practices in Face-To-Face and Remote Situations in Kindergarten

Abstract

Due to school closures during the spread of the new coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, remote educational practices through information and communication technology (ICT) were conducted for the continuation of education for preschool children. In the future, it is expected that remote educational practices will be conducted to support children with difficulties in face-toface teaching. Thus, this study focuses on a remote reading program conducted by a junior college student in the kindergarten teacher training course with 12 or 13 kindergarteners. Communication was observed between this student and the children during the reading. The practices were performed in both remote and face-to-face situations, after which their communication was compared. Based on the findings, in the remote situation, we could observe the children’s reactions to the student's actions. However, there were fewer interactions between the children and the student than those in the face-to-face situation. Further research is required to examine the causes of this matter.