Using Digital Clinical Simulations to enhance Transfer of Equity Pedagogical Competencies in Teacher Preparation

• In Event: Preparing 21st-Century Teachers With Digital Clinical Simulations: Advancing Equity and Innovation in Teacher Education

Abstract

The goal of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of digital clinical simulations in enhancing the transfer of equitable pedagogical competencies in teacher preparation. The subtle and insidious nature of inequities in classrooms and schools today will present a significant challenge to well-intentioned preservice teachers (PSTs) if not addressed during their preparation studies. This study focuses on the transformative potential of digital simulations as powerful tools for promoting the transfer of complex equitable teaching competencies. Dotger et al. (2022) posit that equity-promoting simulations have the potential to “provide a visceral understanding of inequity beyond intellectual comprehension, motivating PSTs to become agents of change." The researchers examined the literature on the transfer of learning for insights on how to design, embed, and scaffold equity-promoting digital simulations to promote the rich transfer of learning for PSTs.

A total of 41 PSTs participated in an equity-promoting digital clinical simulation in Teacher Moments entitled Coach Wright. Their responses were analyzed using a Structural Topic Model (STM) tool to detect topics associated with equity-promoting mindsets and behaviors. Researchers compared the participants' responses to those of MOOC participants who completed the same simulation in a previous study (Littenberg et al., 2021). The results showed that there were no noticeable differences in responses between both participant groups. Although topics associated with equity-promoting mindsets and behaviors were detected, most participants in the study still needed to develop a deeper understanding of the interconnectivity and interdependence of all the factors that impact teaching and learning to eliminate pedagogical inequities.

The study underscores the potential of digital clinical simulations to bridge theoretical knowledge and practical application in teaching, enabling PSTs to immerse themselves in realistic scenarios in a low-risk, controlled environment. This study adds to existing literature on the power of digital simulations to engage novice teachers in approximations of practice, a process that can be both exciting and full of potential, and encourage learning beyond automatic, spontaneous routine to support “mindful abstraction of knowledge and skills from one context for application in another to promote rich transfer of learning during and after preparation” (Bruenger, 2015, p. 109). The findings of this study also support the notion that simulations must deliberately engage PSTs in productive struggle, which can be accomplished by delivering content in the form of contrasting cases that highlight key features of inequities and core principles of equity that emerge during teaching (Bransford et al., 2000). Implications include increasing attention to “preparation for future learning” as a transfer of learning perspective when designing, embedding, and scaffolding digital clinical simulations in teacher education programs.

Author

• Doreene Etongue-Mayer, College of St. Scholastica