Abstract:

Student teaching is an invaluable experience that strengthens pedagogical competence, practical skills, and ethical values among students in education programs. However, as the education system abruptly shifted to distance and hybrid learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic, student teachers had to adapt promptly to keep abreast with the changes. Thus, this transcendental phenomenological study aimed to described the lived experience (8) student teachers who navigated the teaching and learning process from pandemic to post-pandemic. The data were obtained through interviews, observations, and documentary analyses. They were later analyzed through Moustakas' steps of phenomenological reduction: epoche, horizonalization, clustering into themes, textural & structural descriptions, and overall essence. The findings revealed 31 significant statements from the analysis, forming seven themes: 1. ) Adaptability is the key: strategies to survive 2.) Stumbling blocks in Online Communication 3.) The need to upgrade school facilities and resources 4.) Defying obstacles with perseverance 5.) The power of social support 6.) Gearing up for the future profession, and 7.) From novice to noble: the essence of introspection. Those themes were further elaborated through textural and structural descriptions. A statement of the essence of the lived experience of student teachers as a result of intuitive integration is offered together with recommendations for future insights.