Classroom video in early childhood teacher education: reviewing the literature to inform research and practice ( Videos de clase en la formación de docentes de infantil: revisión de la literatura para guiar la investigación y la práctica )

Abstract

We reviewed the empirical research literature in which videos of classroom practice had been used to foster the learning of pre-service and/or in-service early childhood education (ECE) teachers. The first goal was to identify research trends and gaps to inform the work of ECE researchers. Most studies have been conducted with in-service teachers within professional development programmes and stand-alone projects. No research has investigated how ECE teachers’ learning is affected by the situation type featured in videos, the teachers showcased, the length of videos or the age of the children videotaped. The field needs more large-scale studies focusing on the impact of specific video-related variables and conducted in diverse learning settings. The second goal was to illustrate diverse ways in which classroom videos have been used to foster ECE teachers’ learning. Key studies showcasing effective approaches are presented. The significance of this article relies on being the first systematic review focusing on classroom videos in the field of ECE, thereby contributing to raising ECE teachers’ awareness of their learning ecologies.