Aspects Of Pedagogical Content Knowledge Research Articles

Development and Viability of an Alternative Virtual-Contextual Model in Teacher Training: Continuity Initiative in Laid-back Settings

Initiatives to ensure the continuity of training programs within the COVID-19 environment had been regarded emergent and discretionary particularly in laid-back settings. The training initiative to improve the professional practice of 35 public primary school teachers in Sumba, one of the remotest islands of Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia fitted this mold. The call for a responsive training that grounds teachers’ teaching and the context of their professional training remained a vantage point for systemic exploration. Qualitatively designed, this study explored the practicality of combining the virtual and the conventional teacher training mode. It hinged on a 1-year training period, of which five months charted the implementation of the face-to-face or conventional mode and the next seven months spanned the implementation of both virtual and conventional training modes. Guided by the systemic analysis approach, data collection emerged into two timelines. Phase 1 data collection framed the conceptualization of the virtual-contextual model and Phase 2 data collection grounded the operational features of the alternative-virtual framework. For validity triangulation, three external master trainers of trainers (MTOT) scrutinized the frameworks and a school site mentor, the overseer of the training program. Likewise, data from related trial studies formed integral part in the revisions of the training models. Formative and summative trainee artifacts such as lesson plans, teaching and learning materials, reflection notes, self- and peer reviews as well as interview typescripts were pooled, thematically coded, and inductively analyzed. Moreover, demonstration teaching tasks were assessed and were used to explain teacher practice orientations and improved changes. The findings yielded four (4) combined delivery strategies featuring the virtual-contextual model: (1) virtual synchronous training and asynchronous training; (2) teacher and peer interactive activities and formative support from the school-based mentor; (3) online and direct feedback from virtual trainers and school-based mentor; and (4) workplace formative-summative assessment and intermittent incentives with parallel extrinsic reinforcement. In conclusion, the combined outcomes of these four strategies propelled a layered yet mutable or alterable teaching attributes in the aspects of pedagogical content knowledge (PCK), namely: curriculum knowledge, learning instruction, understanding how students learn, and specific content mastery.

Predicting the development of digital media PCK/TPACK: The role of PCK, motivation to use digital media, interest in and previous experience with digital media

In today's digital age, incorporating technology in teaching has become increasingly important. To prepare future teachers, understanding the factors that influence the development of teachers' corresponding knowledge base is crucial. However, not only is there a small number of studies investigating the development of pre-service teachers' professional knowledge, but these studies also predominantly rely on cross-sectional and/or self-reported data. This pre-post study investigated the factors associated with the development of digital media Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK) in physics teacher education through a seminar-based approach with N = 66 pre-service teachers (PSTs). Investigated factors include PSTs' PCK about students' conceptions (PCK-SC), general motivation to use digital media, interest in digital media, and previous experience with digital media. The findings suggest that a strong foundation in various aspects of PCK is essential for the development of digital media PCK, as PSTs' PCK-SC has proven to be a positive predictor for the development of PTSs' digital media PCK. Surprisingly, the study found that higher motivation to use digital media negatively affects the development of digital media PCK, suggesting that excessive motivation may hinder the acquisition of digital media PCK. Additionally, the study found that PSTs' interest in digital media positively influenced the development of digital media PCK, while previous experience with digital media had a negative impact on its development. The study suggests that future research should focus on investigating the general professional knowledge of PSTs and identifying the proficiency levels of PCK needed for the development of digital media PCK. It also emphasizes the importance of considering both, cognitive and affective aspects of teacher preparation, as seminars that solely focus on motivation may not be adequate in fostering effective technology integration. The study recommends that seminars on digital media integration should be situated at later stages of teacher education or after introductory courses that cover other facets of PCK. Furthermore, integrated seminars addressing multiple facets of PCK alongside digital media PCK could be explored in future research. Overall, this study provides insights into the factors influencing PSTs' development of digital media PCK and suggests avenues for further research to improve the integration of digital media in teaching practices for enhanced student learning outcomes.

The development of pedagogical content knowledge of prospective primary teachers in a lesson study

PurposeTo understand how lesson study (LS) can promote the development of pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) of prospective primary teachers. More specifically, to know what PCK prospective primary teachers develop during LS and how this development occurs.Design/methodology/approachFollowing a qualitative approach, this study took place in a teacher education institution where a LS was carried out during the last semester of the academic year with the participation of two prospective teachers, a teacher educator, a cooperating teacher and a researcher.FindingsThe results suggest that prospective teachers may develop PCK when they participate in LS, regarding lesson planning (goals and lesson plan), task design, students' difficulties and solving strategies, whole-class discussions and observation of student learning. This development occurs through the engagement in LS activities that allow prospective teachers to deepen their knowledge.Originality/valueThis study investigates how the development of prospective teachers' PCK occurs during LS, providing knowledge about how different activities of the LS help develop different aspects of PCK.

An Insight into Teachers’ Classroom Practices: The Case of Secondary Education Science Teachers

Teachers’ knowledge rooted in classroom practices guides their actions when dealing with a specific subject matter. To assess the quality of these practices, a close examination of the “classroom reality” is needed. The present study, which was carried out in Greece, investigates secondary science teachers’ practices. To record these practices, we used special classroom observation tools as well as questionnaires to record students’ views of their teachers’ practices. The observation tools and the student questionnaire focus on specifically formed criteria deriving from aspects of Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK). In total, 32 secondary science teachers and 1154 students participated in our study. The results indicated that the strong points of teachers’ teaching practices concern their subject matter knowledge, the use of representations, their questioning, their communication of the instructional objectives to the students, and knowledge of students’ difficulties. The weak points are related to the use of a variety of teaching approaches, the investigation of the students’ alternative conceptions, the experimental and ICT-based teaching, and the implementation of inquiry-based activities. The methodology employed in our study was fruitful in providing a holistic view of science teachers’ practices and can be used for investigating classroom practices of teachers of other subjects as well.

An inquiry into pedagogical content knowledge (PCK): Teachers’ views on teaching

Pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) has been given a lot of attention in the academic field in recent years, in particular, in the field of teacher cognition and teacher knowledge. This research aimed to investigate one aspect of pedagogical content knowledge, teachers’ views on language, as shown in the practices of six Chinese in-service teachers teaching College English at two universities in the south of China by using a qualitative multiple case study approach. The results showed that teachers’ management view on teaching was more developed than other views. The study yielded implications for in-service College English teacher education and development in mainland China.

Primary science teachers’ narratives about significant colleagues in light of collective PCK

ABSTRACT The aim of this paper is to bring the voices of teachers to the foreground and provide insight into the collective aspects of pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) development in primary schools, as perceived by science and technology teachers themselves. Through narrative inquiry in a retrospective and situated perspective, the narratives of the teachers are analysed, and findings are discussed with regard to the concept of significant colleagues and the two recent consensus models of PCK. The findings reveal teacher narratives concerning the influence of not only local collective structures and significant colleagues around perceived PCK development but also collective aspects of PCK, which provide a practice embedded perspective on its development through collegial structures.

Analysis of pedagogical content knowledge on students of science education as pre-service teachers in Madura secondary school

Pedagogical content knowledge is defined as the ability of teachers for giving comprehensively true concepts to students which is provided through effective teaching and learning environments for all students. This capability has to be fulfilled by pre-service teachers in order they can create effective learning process as they planned and expected. This study aimed at describing the pedagogical content knowledge of students of science education as pre-service teachers in Madura secondary school. This qualitative descriptive research involved 110 students from three classes as subjects. Data were collected through interview, questionnaire, and test then analyzed qualitative descriptively using the triangulation technique. Findings indicated that the lowest aspects of pedagogical content knowledge on the study subjects were about the teaching skill and comprehension about students’ needs. In addition, misconceptions were also found during the learning activity. It was also found that they have not implemented various learning methods to enhance students’ motivation. It can be assumed that students have not mastered the capabilities of being a teacher, so that their pedagogical content knowledge still reached moderate level. To sum up, the pedagogical content knowledge on students of science education as pre-service teachers in Madura secondary school still need to be enhanced respectively.

An Investigation into Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK): Teachers’ Views on Knowledge

Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK) has been given a lot of attention in the academic field in recent years, inparticular in the field of teacher cognition and teacher knowledge. This research aimed to investigate the views on language (regarded as one aspect of PCK) shown in the practices of six Chinese in-service teachers teaching College English at two universities in the south of China by using a qualitative multiple case study approach. The existing literature guided the current research, which investigated teachers’ views on knowledge to guide language teacher education and development in mainland China. The results of the data analysis in this study revealed that the participant teachers were generally experienced in their use of declarative knowledge, but possibly unskilled in their use of strategic knowledge. To summarize, views on knowledge encompasses teachers’ creative ways of thinking and their personal understanding of the discipline of teaching. It is the teachers’ ability to endow declarative knowledge with personal significance. Views on knowledge include teachers’ personal wisdom that transforms procedural knowledge into strategic knowledge (the ability to solve problems in classroom teaching practice). It entails teachers’ constant updating and development of their personal pedagogical knowledge in the teaching practice of particular subject matter.

Making education for sustainable development happen in elementary schools: the role of teachers

This study complements the discussion on theoretically derived competence models through an empirical analysis that gives a voice to teachers who are experienced in education for sustainable development (ESD). It adds their insights and expertise to the academic discourse. Our original contributions are threefold: (1) We find justification for aspects of pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) and content knowledge (CK), which share a common understanding of the relevance of competencies in teaching, and for the importance of acting on an institutional level. (2) We illustrate these competencies via an example from ESD in Germany. (3) We contribute to the discussion of ESD by adding (a) the view of the teachers, (b) the drivers behind and barriers to ESD as reported by the investigated teachers themselves, and (c) an ascertainment of the structural competencies of ESD teachers in terms of their awareness of structures and hierarchies and the communication patterns used therein. We interviewed 12 teachers involved in ESD at German elementary schools and identified two types of ESD teachers. Both types aim to contribute to social change through their ESD activities; however, the teachers display different sets of competencies when it comes to integrating ESD into teaching.

Exploring one aspect of pedagogical content knowledge of teaching assistants using the Conceptual Survey of Electricity and Magnetism

Instruction is unlikely to be effective if instructors do not know the common alternate conceptions of introductory physics students and explicitly take into account common student difficulties in their instructional design. Here, we discuss research involving the Conceptual Survey of Electricity and Magnetism (CSEM) to evaluate one aspect of the pedagogical content knowledge of teaching assistants (TAs): knowledge of introductory students' alternate conceptions in electricity and magnetism as revealed by the CSEM. For each item on the CSEM, the TAs were asked to identify the most common incorrect answer choice selected by introductory physics students if they did not know the correct answer after traditional instruction. Then, we used introductory student CSEM post-test data to assess the extent to which TAs were able to identify the most common alternate conception of introductory students in each question on the CSEM. We find that the TAs were thoughtful when attempting to identify common student difficulties and they enjoyed learning about student difficulties this way. However, they struggled to identify many common difficulties of introductory students that persist after traditional instruction. We discuss specific alternate conceptions that persist after traditional instruction, the extent to which TAs were able to identify them, and results from think-aloud interviews with TAs which provided valuable information regarding why the TAs sometimes selected certain alternate conceptions as the most common but were instead very rare among introductory students. We also discuss how tasks such as the one used in this study can be used in professional development programs to engender productive discussions about the importance of being knowledgeable about student alternate conceptions in order to help students learn.

Middle School Teachers’ Use of Mathematics to Make Sense of Student Solutions to Proportional Reasoning Problems

Mathematics teacher education aims to improve teachers’ use of mathematical knowledge to support teaching and learning, an aspect of pedagogical content knowledge (PCK). In this study, we interviewed teachers to understand how they used mathematics to make sense of student solutions to proportional reasoning problems. The larger purpose was to find accurate ways of categorizing teachers’ ability to do this vital aspect of teaching and thereby to inform assessment, teacher education, and professional development. We conjectured that teachers’ PCK for proportional reasoning could be reliably described in terms of attention to quantitative meanings in story problem contexts and in terms of understanding naive forms of proportional reasoning. Instead, our findings reveal that individual teachers used a variety of means to make sense of (1) cognitively similar student solutions to different tasks and (2) mathematically related steps of a student solution within a single task. These findings illustrate the complexity of PCK for the topic of proportional reasoning and suggest the limits of what can be inferred about teacher knowledge from teachers’ evaluations of student solutions. We discuss implications for teacher education and assessment.

How Field Experiences Prepare Pre-service Teachers in Teaching Elementary Mathematics

Field experience is a foundation among teacher education programs in which student-teachers are provided with excellent role models willing to engage in a reflective practice of the teaching profession. This descriptive-narrative-phenomenological study is anchored on the theory that field experiences contributes to the mathematical pedagogical content knowledge of pre-service teachers. Responses from 60 elementary education pre-service teachers revealed that field experiences significantly affect their preparation for teaching elementary mathematics not only in the areas of content and pedagogy but also in management and social relationship. The study thus concludes that field experiences materialized the desire of every teacher education institution to model teacher candidates in all aspects of pedagogical content knowledge though intense exposure that enrich and enhance their capability in teaching elementary mathematics.

Declarative and dynamic pedagogical content knowledge as elicited through two video-based interview methods

Although pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) has become widely recognized as an essential part of the knowledge base for teaching, empirical evidence demonstrating a connection between PCK and teaching practice or student learning outcomes is mixed. In response, we argue for further attention to the measurement of dynamic (spontaneous or flexible, as opposed to static) aspects of PCK. We identify a set of trade-offs entailed in the measurement of teachers’ PCK and propose two video-based interview methods for eliciting teachers’ PCK. We describe a study in which we used these methods to elicit high-school physics teachers’ PCK for the topic of force and motion. Interview 1 was based on video clips from teachers’ own classroom instruction and elicited the reasoning underlying their instructional decision making. In Interview 2, teachers responded to a standard set of video clips highlighting both typical and unexpected student thinking. Although all six teachers demonstrated the main components of their declarative PCK consistently across the two interviews, Interview 2 allowed us to characterize a more dynamic form of PCK that may underlie teachers’ in-the-moment instructional reasoning. When exhibiting strong dynamic PCK, teachers appeared to rely heavily on their declarative PCK as they reasoned about new examples of student thinking and corresponding instructional responses. In addition, demonstrations of dynamic PCK included features likely to support further PCK development, including a willingness to think critically about evidence of student thinking, physics content, and pros and cons of instructional representations. Although we were able to detect seemingly meaningful differences in teachers’ declarative and dynamic PCK, diversity in and the contextualized nature of the responses demonstrating strong PCK raise questions about the possibility of differentiating between such responses for measurement purposes and, thus, the potential for moving beyond elicitation, to measurement, of dynamic forms of PCK. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach.

Preschool Teachers’ Sensitivity to Mathematics in Children’s Play: The Influence of Math-Related School Experiences, Emotional Attitudes, and Pedagogical Beliefs

Without a doubt, math-related pedagogical content knowledge (PCK), pedagogical beliefs, and emotional attitudes are considered important dimensions of preschool teachers’ professional competence. This research, however, documents that they are still understudied. This study focuses on certain aspects of the described dimensions: the sensitivity toward mathematical content in play-based situations, joy and interest in mathematics, the importance of mathematics as an educational area of preschool, and math-related emotional school experiences. The study explores the relationships among these factors with a group of 221 preschool teachers from 29 preschool centers in Germany. Background information, math-related school experiences, emotional attitudes, pedagogical beliefs, and aspects of PCK were obtained through a questionnaire. The findings of this study indicate that preschool teachers show some sensitivity toward mathematical content in play-based situations but do not show negative attitudes toward mathematics in general. Present joy and interest in mathematics are related to the rated relevance of preschool mathematics as an educational area. Their current emotional attitude toward mathematics predicts their sensitivity toward mathematical content. The results underline the importance of emotional aspects as facets of preschool teachers’ professional competence.

Instructional significance for teaching history: A preliminary framework

This study explores preservice and practicing teachers’ conceptions of historical significance generally and for the history classroom. Using think-aloud interviews and card-sorting data, we engaged in qualitative analysis of how four preservice and five practicing teachers answered two questions related to determining significance: what events are most significant in world history and what events are most important for students to learn? Results showed that (a) participants answered the two questions differently, and (b) both practicing and preservice teachers added considerations when responding to the question about what events are most important for students to learn. Through these analyses, we developed the term instructional significance to describe an aspect of pedagogical content knowledge that serves as a lens through which teachers view the content they teach, and think about that content in preparing to teach students. We use these findings and research on student and teacher conceptions of historical significance to propose a preliminary framework for instructional significance for teaching history. We conclude by suggesting the utility of the framework to history classrooms and to future research.

Exploring one aspect of pedagogical content knowledge of teaching assistants using the test of understanding graphs in kinematics

The Test of Understanding Graphs in Kinematics (TUG-K) is a multiple-choice test developed by Beichner in 1994 to assess students' understanding of kinematics graphs. Many of the items on the TUG-K have strong distractor choices which correspond to students' common difficulties with kinematics graphs. Instruction is unlikely to be effective if instructors do not know the common difficulties of introductory physics students and explicitly take them into account in their instructional design. We evaluate one aspect of the pedagogical content knowledge of first-year physics graduate students enrolled in a teaching assistant training course related to topics covered in the TUG-K. In particular, for each item on the TUG-K, the graduate students were asked to identify which incorrect answer choice they thought would be most commonly selected by introductory physics students if they did not know the correct answer after instruction in relevant concepts. We used the graduate student data and the data from Beichner's original paper for introductory physics students (which was collected from over 500 college and high school students) to assess this aspect of the pedagogical content knowledge of the graduate students, i.e., knowledge of student difficulties related to kinematics graphs as they are revealed by the TUG-K. We find that, although the graduate students, on average, performed better than random guessing at identifying introductory student difficulties on the TUG-K, they did not identify many common difficulties that introductory students have with graphs in kinematics. In addition, we find that the ability of graduate students to identify the difficulties of introductory students is context dependent and that discussions among the graduate students improved their understanding of student difficulties related to kinematics graphs. Moreover, we find that the ability of American graduate students in identifying common student difficulties is comparable with that of foreign graduate students.

한국 사범대학 수학교육과의 교육과정 및 교수방법 분석

This study has examined the current status of mathematics education departments by analyzing its curriculum and teaching methods. We analyzed data set of the number of faculty and students, curricula, textbooks and instructional methods among 23 mathematics education department in Korea. The data reveals that the curricula of the universities of education has shown that more content knowledge subjects are taught than pedagogy knowledge subjects. However, it is important to note that there is increasing emphasis on pedagogical content knowledge. In addition, the curricula of mathematics education departments deal with various aspects of pedagogical content knowledge. What matters is whether the system works for developing a sound and deep understanding of fundamental aspects of the subject matter in future mathematics teachers. The results of the study point to the importance of pedagogical content knowledge and to the essential components that can promote further understanding of effective teaching for preparing future teachers in mathematics education departments.

코티칭을 통한 초임 과학영재교육 담당교사의 수업 전문성 변화에 관한 사례연구

As a case study on the changes of beginning science-gifted education teachers` teaching professionalism through coteaching, this study deeply investigated the change processes in the aspects of pedagogical content knowledge. We selected two beginning teachers whose teaching careers in secondary science-gifted education were less than five years. The teachers planned, performed, and reflected together their science instructions for secondary science-gifted students during nine class hours over three times. We observed coteaching of science instructions of the teachers, and analyzed the taped videos, the materials, the transcripts for discussions between them and in-depth interviews with them, their reflective journals, and researcher`s field notes by using the constant comparative method. This study revealed that the coteaching positively changed the two teachers` practical knowledge about the curriculum for science-gifted education, the instructional strategies for science-gifted education, the assessment in science-gifted education, the science-gifted students, and the science contents although there were some limitations. The results suggest that the coteaching will be useful in improving beginning teachers` teaching professionalism, and provide practical implications in finding the ways to use it effectively in science-gifted education.

Preservice Elementary Teachers' Evaluations of Elementary Students' Scientific Models: An aspect of pedagogical content knowledge for scientific modeling

Part of the work of teaching elementary science involves evaluating elementary students' work. Depending on the nature of the student work, this task can be straightforward. However, evaluating elementary students' representations of their science learning in the form of scientific models can pose significant challenges for elementary teachers. To address some of these challenges, we incorporated a modeling-based elementary science unit in our elementary science teaching methods course to support preservice teachers in gaining knowledge about and experience in evaluating students' scientific models. In this study, we investigate the approaches and criteria preservice elementary teachers use to evaluate elementary student-generated scientific models. Our findings suggest that with instruction, preservice elementary teachers can adopt criterion-based approaches to evaluating students' scientific models. Additionally, preservice teachers make gains in their self-efficacy for evaluating elementary students' scientific models. Taken together, these findings indicate that preservice teachers can begin to develop aspects of pedagogical content knowledge for scientific modeling.

Validating Measures of Algebra Teacher Subject Matter Knowledge and Pedagogical Content Knowledge

The purpose of this study was to validate inferences about scores of one task designed to measure subject matter knowledge and three tasks designed to measure aspects of pedagogical content knowledge. Evidence for the validity of inferences was based on two expectations. First, if tasks were sensitive to expertise, we would find group differences. Second, tasks that measured similar types of knowledge would correlate strongly, and tasks that measured different types of knowledge would correlate weakly. We recruited and assessed 4 groups of participants including 46 experienced algebra teachers (2+ years experience), 17 novice algebra teachers (0–2 years experience), 10 teaching experts, and 13 subject matter experts. Results indicate that one task differentiated among levels of expertise and measured several aspects of knowledge needed to teach algebra. Results also highlight that future studies should use a combination of tasks to accurately measure different aspects of teacher knowledge.