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Through the perspectives of early childhood educators (ECEs) working with under-fives, this article explores how play and learning featured when shifted abruptly to online spaces during COVID-19 in Malta. This work draws on Siemens’ connectivism learning theory which sees the integration of technology and social interactions as connections that empower learning in a digital age. The COVID-19 scenario called for immediately available data; consequently, a quantitative methodology was adopted. Two online surveys were held: in 2020 and 2021.  Two hundred sixty-three ECEs participated in the first online survey, while seventy-nine the second. Findings locate benefits, challenges, and opportunities for play and learning online, shaped by the development of three key changing patterns in Maltese ECEC: an uneven start for ECEs, e-interactions, and curricula and pedagogies in online spaces – a kaleidoscope of play and learning in COVID-19 times. Implications for pre-service and in-service ECEs’ support, monitoring, and training are discussed to facilitate effective play and learning in online environments.

Various studies outline the 'digital disconnect' that exists between the digital experiences that children have with technologies at home and at school. It is however important to document the increasingly multimodal technological world that young children are inhabiting. Framed by socio-cultural and ecological theoretical perspectives, this case study of a 4-year old girl investigates how the contexts surrounding the child impact the use of digital technologies and the differences, if any, between the two contexts. Participatory methods are used to gather data from the child participant in relation to her experiences, preferences and interactions with technology, which was triangulated with the views of one parent and her current educator. Qualitative data were analysed using thematic analysis. Four themes emerged as follows: technological uses and competences, child agency and participation, individual and collective funds of knowledge and bridging of children's lifeworlds. Findings indicated that the differences or digital disconnect between the home and the school are not necessarily perceived as negative or limiting, yet there is also room for fluidity and openness to explore | 2179

The notion of the human person, together with the importance that the Catholic community has, since its inception, given to the educational enterprise, has led various authors, including Augustine, Abelard, and Aquinas, among others, to reflect on the meaning of intellect and talents and their effects on education. Yet such reflections were never standalone considerations but rather built in dialogue, and at times in confrontation, with the classics and secular treatises of the time. After outlining how the Catholic community conceptualizes the human person, this paper will touch upon the concepts of talent as developed and dealt with during the 12th century. The latter period has been chosen on the basis of the developments in pedagogical thought and practices. The paper aims to critically analyse the notion of ‘ingenium’ (understood as talents, innate abilities) against the main philosophical and pedagogical thought that has animated Catholic educational practices.

The COVID-19 pandemic forced a rapid transition from onsite to online learning spaces for initial teacher education (ITE); with Universities even adopting new modes of pedagogy and assessment. This study explores: (1) how Maltese ITE undergraduate early years and postgraduate primary education students dealt with more remote forms of learning during the pandemic in Malta, and (2) the teaching/lecturing modes used, by lecturers, for remote learning, assessment and concerns that tie-in with broader student wellbeing. The data were gathered through an online quantitative survey designed to collect information about ITE students’ views. Student responses strongly suggest that in the eventuality of an ongoing vaccination ‘post-COVID’ era, ITE within HE programmes should consider revisiting the course content and delivery, supporting and fostering, blended and online approaches. A ‘blind spot’ reflecting the struggle for independence, autonomy, and control during COVID-19 in a postcolonial Maltese Higher Eduction context also emerged. The insights gained highlight how ITE students’ views on their experiences of online pedagogy, assessment, and how these new modes impacted their wellbeing within a Maltese HE context can serve to inform policy and practice. These results emphasize the need to promote participatory research amongst university students as key to inform HE policy and practice. Keywords: Initial Teacher Education; Online learning; Covid-19; student participation; Higher Education