Measuring pre-service teachers’ general pedagogical knowledge—What are the results telling?

Abstract

A pilot study was carried out in order to attempt capturing teachers' general pedagogical knowledge (GPK). The aim of the paper is to find out how pre-service teachers' GPK differs within internship experience, level of education and work experiences, and what can be concluded about the test instrument based on results. All together 135 pre-service teachers from Estonia filled in a knowledge test with 60 multiple choice questions. The results showed that those who had not done their internship performed better at the test, possibly indicating a theoretical nature of the test instrument. However, it also shows a shift in pre-service teachers' knowledge when entering practical field. Therefore, it can be discussed whether the experiences from practice schools differ from what has been learned at the university courses. For future test developments, the theoretical inclination of the test should be challenged by improving items targeting more of practical knowledge. Keywords: Teachers' knowledge, general pedagogical knowledge, teacher education.