Julie Gess-Newsome

Pedagogical Content Knowledge : An Introduction and Orientation

It should be noted that the authors in this volume represent neither of the continuum extremes presented in the previous section. However, each author started with Shulman’s model and, based on their interpretation, shaped the model in unique ways that fit their perceptions of the data on teacher cognition. Hopefully this book will enhance the reader’s understanding of PCK through an analysis of both historic and current conceptions, an overview of the research literature, and a presentation of the practical implications derived from this model. Does the construct of PCK help or constrain our pursuit of excellence in teacher preparation? The answer to this question is left to the reader. An anticipated result of such contemplation will lead to individual and community exploration, development, and evaluation of alternative models used to study teacher cognition. As with PCK, future models will need to address the following questions: What knowledge do teachers need to possess in order to be effective? What model of teacher knowledge best explains the data that exists and stimulates future attempts to reconcile, synthesize, and expand our knowledge?

Educational Reform, Personal Practical Theories, and Dissatisfaction: The Anatomy of Change in College Science Teaching:

The Teacher-Centered Systemic Reform model (TCSR) recognizes teaching context, teacher characteristics, teacher thinking, and their interactions as influential factors in attempts to implement classroom reform. Using the TCSR model, teachers’ personal practical theories, and conceptual change as a framework, the authors of this article studied three college science faculty members as they designed and implemented an integrated, inquiry-based science course. The documentation and analysis of context, instructors’ knowledge and beliefs, and teaching episodes allowed the authors to identify and study the interaction of factors, including grant support, that shape reform attempts. The results suggest that grant-supported mitigation of structural barriers is a necessary but insufficient precursor to change and that personal practical theories are the most powerful influence on instructional practice. The findings highlight the critical role of pedagogical and contextual dissatisfaction in creating a context for fundamental change.

Overcoming the Paradox of Change without Difference: A Model of Change in the Arena of Fundamental School Reform

Fundamental shifts in American educational practices have been difficult to accomplish and sustain. Most reform efforts that have sought to significantly alter accepted patterns of schooling have emerged in practice as shadows of their original intent. This article reviews four perspectives on educational reform that provide insights into the historical paradox of change without difference. None of those previous perspectives, however, adequately accounts for the complexity of the reform process. A new model of educational reform, the Teacher-Centered Systemic Reform (TCSR) model, integrates the previous perspectives and highlights teacher thinking as a central factor shaped by the interdependent influences of the general context of reform, a teacher’s personal profile, and the structural and cultural contexts of teachers’work within embedded systems. The authors provide examples that illustrate how the TCSR provides a more comprehensive framework for the design and evaluation of reform initiatives.

Do subject matter knowledge, pedagogical knowledge, and pedagogical content knowledge constitute the ideal gas law of science teaching?

(1992). Do subject matter knowledge, pedagogical knowledge, and pedagogical content knowledge constitute the ideal gas law of science teaching? Journal of Science Teacher Education: Vol. 3, No. 1, pp. 16-20.

Elementary Science Methods Courses and the National Science Education Standards'. Are We Adequately Preparing Teachers?

Despite the apparent lack of universally accepted goals or objectives for elementary science methods courses, teacher educators nationally are autonomously designing these classes to prepare prospective teachers to teach science. It is unclear, however, whether science methods courses are preparing teachers to teach science effectively or to implement the National Science Education Standards (National Research Council, 1996). Using the “Science Teaching Standards” as a framework for analysis, this research proceeded in two phases. During the first phase, the elementary science methods courses, perspectives, and practices of six science teacher educators were examined to determine similarities and differences in the course goals and objectives, overall emphases, and their efforts to prepare their students to implement the Science Teaching Standards. The second phase of the study investigated the elementary science methods courses of a national sample of science teacher educators as reflected in their course syllabi. It was found that universal inclusion of content related to the Science Teaching Standards does not exist, nor are there clear linkages between course goals, activities, and assignments.

Adjusting Educational Practice to Increase Female Persistence in the Sciences

The purpose of this study was to determine the importance of university programs designed to support, encourage, and retain female undergraduates enrolled in math, science, and engineering (MSE) majors. Interviews and roundtable discussions with thirty-two junior and senior female MSE majors revealed numerous factors within the university setting that contributed to female MSE retention and graduation. Four factors are discussed within the scope of this article: support networks and university acclimation, faculty associations, financial assistance, and university support programs that created a more personalized educational experience.

Teacher pedagogical content knowledge, practice, and student achievement†

ABSTRACT In this exploratory study, we attempted to measure potential changes in teacher knowledge and practice as a result of an intervention, as well as trace such changes through a theoretical path of influence that could inform a model of teacher professional knowledge. We created an instrument to measure pedagogical content knowledge (PCK), studied the impact of a two-year professional development intervention, explored the relationships among teacher variables to attempt to validate a model of teacher professional knowledge, and examined the relationship of teacher professional knowledge and classroom practice on student achievement. Teacher professional knowledge and skill was measured in terms of academic content knowledge (ACK), general pedagogical knowledge (GenPK), PCK and teacher practice. Our PCK instrument identified two factors within PCK: PCK-content knowledge and PCK-pedagogical knowledge. Teacher gains existed for all variables. Only GenPK had a significant relationship to teacher practice. ACK was the only variable that explained a substantial portion of student achievement. Our findings provide empirical evidence that we interpret through the lens of the model of teacher professional knowledge and skill, including PCK [Gess-Newsome, J. (2015). A model of teacher professional knowledge and skill including PCK: Results of the thinking from the PCK summit. In A. Berry, P. Friedrichsen, & J. Loughran (Eds.), Re-examining pedagogical content knowledge in science education (pp. 28–42). London: Routledge Press], highlighting the complexity of measuring teacher professional knowledge and skill.

Bilingual nurse Education program: Applicant characteristics that predict success

RESEARCH ABSTRACT Nurses are in great demand across the United States, but those fluent in both Spanish and English are in particularly short supply. This study examined three cohorts of students that entered a Spanish‐English Nursing Education program to determine characteristics of applicants that produced student success. Unlike many nursing programs, entrance requirements for this bilingual program did not include a minimal grade point average (GPA) or previous course completions. Logistic regression was used to analyze the relationship between five different characteristics of entering students and their later success in the program. Success was measured in terms of program persistence and performance on the NCLEX‐PN and NCLEX‐RN exams. Incoming students with relatively high GPAs (M = 3.2) were significantly more likely to persist through the entire nursing program and pass the NCLEX‐RN exam (p < .05) than those with lower GPAs (M = 2.5).

Developing and evaluating a paper-and-pencil test to assess components of physics teachers’ pedagogical content knowledge

ABSTRACT Teachers’ professional knowledge is assumed to be a key variable for effective teaching. As teacher education has the goal to enhance professional knowledge of current and future teachers, this knowledge should be described and assessed. Nevertheless, only a limited number of studies quantitatively measures physics teachers’ professional knowledge. The study reported in this paper was part of a bigger project with the broader goal of understanding teacher professional knowledge. We designed a test instrument to assess the professional knowledge of physics teachers (N = 186) in the dimensions of content knowledge (CK), pedagogical content knowledge (PCK), and pedagogical knowledge (PK). A model describing the relationships between these three dimensions of professional knowledge was created to inform the design of the tests used to measure CK, PCK, and PK. In this paper, we describe the model with particular emphasis on the PCK part, and the subsequent PCK test development and its implementation in detail. We report different approaches to evaluate the PCK test, including the description of content validity, the examination of the internal structure of professional knowledge, and the analysis of construct validity by testing teachers across different school subjects, teachers from different school types, pre-service teachers, and physicists. Our findings demonstrate that our PCK test results could distinguish physics teachers from the other groups tested. The PCK test results could not be explained by teachers’ CK or PK, cognitive abilities, computational skills, or science knowledge.

Examining the Sustainability of Teacher Learning Following a Year-Long Science Professional Development Programme for Inservice Primary School Teachers.

This two-year, mixed-methods study explored teacher learning during a year-long professional development programme and during the year following the programme. The study examined patterns of change in primary school teachers’ inquiry practices, inquiry beliefs and physical science content knowledge during both years as well as the effects of school-level and individual-level factors on these changes in the year following the programme. Fifteen fourth-grade through sixth-grade teachers from three low-performing US schools participated. Results indicated that the programme was effective in advancing teacher change during the programme year, as scores in all three measures increased at statistically significant rates. Only content knowledge scores increased significantly in the year following the professional development. A combination of school-level and individual-level factors impacted the year 2 changes. School-level factors were: having supportive same-grade teams and/or a supportive mentor who advocated inquiry science and who prioritized science as a subject; principal prioritization of science; and having easy access to and training in the use of relevant materials. The primary individual-level factor was the degree of teachers’ willingness and readiness to change beliefs in fundamental ways. Implications for professional development providers and school administrators are discussed.