Reconciliation Between the Refined Consensus Model of PCK and Extant PCK Models for Advancing PCK Research in Science

Abstract

In this chapter, I discuss how two pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) models known as the pentagon model of PCK and the indispensable and idiosyncratic PCK model can be situated within the Refined Consensus Model (RCM) of PCK as I reflect on examples of my earlier research in science teacher education. To guide my previous research, I used the pentagon model of PCK to capture and portray PCK and the indispensable and idiosyncratic PCK model to measure and assess PCK. I also illustrate how research methods drawn from these two existing models, including approaches such as PCK mapping, in-depth analysis of PCK, PCK surveys, and PCK rubrics, align with the RCM and what insights the RCM provides for improving these methods and advancing PCK research. The body of this chapter is structured around four distinctive features of the RCM, compared to the earlier Consensus Model (CM), that emerged through a critical comparison of the new model with the two extant PCK models, i.e. the RCM’s (1) emphasis on learning context for capturing PCK, (2) explicit visual representation of the link between PCK and the enactment of PCK, (3) distinction between personal PCK and collective PCK, and (4) shift in focus towards PCK development. Major methodological suggestions emerging from this critique for future research into science teacher education using the RCM include data collection encompassing the entire pedagogical cycle and greater attention to contextual factors, student learning, and pedagogical reasoning.