Towards measuring teachers’ general pedagogical knowledge – A mixed method investigation of a pilot test

Abstract

This paper aims to investigate a test instrument measuring teachers’ general pedagogical knowledge. Pre-service teachers, in-service teachers, and teacher educators from Estonia participated in a pilot study (N = 393). Item response theory analysis showed that the items fit to a unidimensional instrument assumption. Three levels of difficulty were identified: questions based on a situation description (easiest), questions connecting situations with theoretical concepts (moderate), and questions requiring theoretical knowledge (difficult). When comparing the sample groups, pre-service teachers struggled with topics that had not been part of their curriculum yet. Interestingly, in-service teachers had more difficulty with questions requiring specific theoretical knowledge while teacher educators struggled more with practical situations in a school context. An overall suggestion for future research is to review the conceptual framework in terms of linking theory and practice to connect rather than to distinguish these characteristics of teachers’ general pedagogical knowledge. The results of the study also contribute to further improvement of the instrument.