Percepción de los estudiantes de octavo ciclo de la carrera de Educación Básica sobre las prácticas preprofesionales

Abstract

Pre-professional internships are key spaces in the construction of teaching professionalism, mobilizing diverse knowledge, skills, and experiences. However, for them to be truly formative, they require certain fundamental factors, such as an adequate institutional environment, the support of tutors and trainers, and rigorous preparation of future professionals. Given the lack of local studies on this topic, this paper aimed to explore how these internships are developed from the perspective of final-year Basic Education students. The study adopted an exploratory qualitative approach and used semi-structured interviews as a data collection instrument, conducted with 12 eighth-year students. The results show that, overall, participants value their experiences positively, highlighting contributions to professional development such as attention to diversity in the classroom and the strengthening of interpersonal relationships with the educational community, especially with students and classroom teachers. At the same time, significant challenges were identified, such as the need to strengthen the relationship between universities and practice schools and to more effectively articulate theory with field experience. In conclusion, pre-professional practice enriches teacher training and provides essential pedagogical tools for future professional development.