Fostering Literacy Practices in Secondary Science and Mathematics Courses: Pre-service Teachers’ Pedagogical Content Knowledge

Anne Murray Orr,Jennifer Mitton Kukner,D.J. Timmons

doi:10.20360/g2cs3z

Abstract

A significant number of high school students struggle to read textbooks and other course materials and to write successfully in content area courses such as mathematics and science (Kane, 2011). This paper investigates how pre-service teacher education can provide a strong literacy foundation for content area teachers. A pilot study, undertaken as part of an ongoing longitudinal study, examines how secondary pre-service teachers plan to infuse their teaching of secondary mathematics and science with literacy practices. This paper inquires into the perspectives of six mathematics and science pre-service teachers who were interviewed after completing a course in content area literacy. Pre-service teachers emphasized their growing awareness of how literacy strategies can enhance student learning in their specific subject areas.

Highlights

A significant number of high school students struggle to read textbooks and other course materials and to write successfully in content area courses such as mathematics and science (Kane, 2011)
This paper highlights findings from interviews with six science and mathematics pre-service teachers conducted in the spring of 2012, the initial phase of our longitudinal study into the emerging literacy practices of science, mathematics, and other subject area pre-service teachers
We are in Year 2 of the study, and have completed two sets of interviews in the spring of 2013 with 19 preservice teachers, as well as observations in eight secondary classrooms, where some of the participants in the 2013 phase of the study were teaching during their field experience

Summary

Introduction

A significant number of high school students struggle to read textbooks and other course materials and to write successfully in content area courses such as mathematics and science (Kane, 2011). The findings that are described in this paper from Year 1 of our study provide a starting point as we begin to analyze pre-service and new teachers‘ understandings of why and how they infuse literacy into their content area courses. Why Literacy is Relevant for all Teachers The meaning of the term literacy is evolving, as is reflected in the Government of Alberta‘s (2009) definition: Literacy is more than the ability to read and write It involves the knowledge, skills and abilities—the competencies—that enable individuals to think critically, communicate effectively, deal with change and solve problems in a variety of contexts to achieve their personal goals, develop their knowledge and potential, and participate fully in society The term literacy refers to a combination of values and abilities to understand, think critically about, engage with, and improve society (Gee, 2001; Kane, 2011; Lind, 2008; UNESCO, 2008; Government of Alberta, 2009)

Discussion

Conclusion