Teaching aspiring teachers, especially science pre-service teachers (PSTs), is complex and demanding. The content that encompasses learning theories, pedagogical approaches, assessment strategies and technology integration to teach science concepts requires interactive engagement. Technology integration has become increasingly pivotal in enhancing teaching and learning experiences. Accordingly, pedagogy in the 21st century requires a robust reimagining on the part of the teacher-educator. Students now have unprecedented access to vast amounts of information, and as teacher-educators, our role has evolved. Our focus is no longer solely on imparting information but on teaching students how to acquire knowledge and apply that knowledge to solve real-life problems. As such, the old status quo of a lecturer standing in front of a class and presenting materials while students listen passively has been negated to the annals of teaching. We should not be droning on voluminous amounts of subject matter; instead, we should focus on enhancing our students’ abilities to engage critically and reflectively with content and support them to construct knowledge creatively. Research indicates that the flipped classroom model can significantly enhance critical thinking abilities by restructuring traditional teaching methods (Wong, 2023). This approach allows students to access instructional content outside of class, freeing valuable in-class time for activities and discussions and promoting critical thinking (Burce, 2024). In 4IR, the use of virtual avatars in supporting a flipped classroom approach is relatively unexplored but potentially offers an innovative approach to equip pre-service teachers with the 4Cs (communication, critical thinking, creativity, collaboration) of the 21st-century. With this in mind, we proposed developing a digital avatarbased solution for teacher-educators to create short virtual avatar videos that will be incorporated into a flipped classroom approach, where traditional lecture content is delivered asynchronously and then use the in-person lecture times to encourage active learning and engagement. In the lectures, students are expected to engage in debates and classroom discussions and be guided towards a consensus in their understanding of the work covered in the learning unit. Using digital avatars, educators can type their pre-lecture information and record the avatar giving the lecture. There is no need to hire videographers, and as the video is created in an easily accessible (.mp4) format, it can be uploaded to the platform of the lecturer’s choosing, in our case Moodle, which the students are using to access all their lecture learning materials. The focus of class thus becomes a period of engagement and discussions rather than a traditional lecture approach that is dominated by the lecturer with no student engagement. This project was a collaboration between the Centre for Advanced Learning Technologies in Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics (CALTSTEAM) and the Metaverse Research Unit (MRU) of the University of Johannesburg (UJ). The stand-alone software is currently undergoing alpha-testing by select faculty members, after which the beta version will be made available to the testers within UJ. Ms Noluthando Mdlalose, a nGap Lecturer and PhD student, conceived an innovative intervention to be implemented at the third-year level of the teacher education programme at the UJ. Drawing on her three years of experience lecturing at this level, she observed that science PTSs were not fully active or engaged during lectures, negatively impacting their overall module performance. The primary issue was the limited lecturing time of about 45 minutes per session for all thirdyear methodology modules. Within this short period, teacher Technology integration has become increasingly pivotal in enhancing teaching and learning experiences.Students now have unprecedented access to vast amounts of information, and as teacher-educators, our role has evolved. Teaching Innovation for the 21st Century | Showcasing UJ Teaching Innovation Projects 2024 62
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