Sara Willermark

Technological Pedagogical and Content Knowledge: A Review of Empirical Studies Published From 2011 to 2016

Technological Pedagogical and Content Knowledge (TPACK) has been introduced as a conceptual framework for the knowledge domains teachers need to master to teach successfully using technology, and has drawn much attention across the educational field. Yet, the framework has been criticized for not being practically useful, due to inaccurate and insufficient definitions. To better understand the critics and the usefulness of the framework, an investigation of how the framework has been applied to show teacher TPACK is needed. This study is a systematic literature review of 107 peer-reviewed journal articles concerning the use of TPACK in empirical studies published from 2011 to 2016. The study supplements previous review studies with more recent work on general characteristics of TPACK studies as well as contributes an analysis of how the framework has been applied to identify teacher TPACK in recent literature. Findings show a variety of approaches and instruments to examine teacher TPACK. Most common is to identify teacher TPACK via self-reporting, while performance evaluations of teaching activities are rare. Additionally, the ways TPACK is operationalized as a measuring instrument are often implicit and make comparison of results difficult. Future directions for research are discussed.

TPACK In Situ: A Design-Based Approach Supporting Professional Development in Practice:

Technological pedagogical and content knowledge (TPACK) is a well-known conceptual framework for what knowledge teachers need in order to teach successfully using technology. Most recent TPACK studies address assessment of teacher TPACK by quantitative self-reporting surveys. Such an approach provides little guidance for teachers in how to develop their everyday teaching practice. We argue for a revival of the original TPACK design-based approach and propose a design-based, operationalization of the framework that is situated in action, context specific, and integrated in practical teaching. The approach has been developed, evaluated, and validated in a school development project in a Nordic Elementary School context using design-based research. The project engaged more than 100 professionals: in-service elementary teachers, school administrators and researchers, and more than 1,000 students during 3 years. The theoretical development evolved from rich descriptions of 38 didactic design as delimited units of teaching including planning, implementation, and evaluation of specified learning tasks acted out in practice. Contributions include framing teaching practice as design activity and a TPACK in situ model and methods targeting reflective practitioners. Our proposed approach addresses current limitations of TPACK and is aligned with advocated professional development methods.

Can Teachers' Fragmented Work Situation Jeopardize Professional Development of Future Teaching Practices?

Digitization of schools has been on the political agenda for decades, but despite all reforms, technology investments and professional development initiatives, the goals are not yet reached. We have examined how teachers perceive their working situation in order to explore if the conditions are suitable for learning and novel teaching practices. 18 interviews with Swedish primary school teachers were conducted and transcribed, from which 330 excerpts were extracted and divided in two characterizing categories: fragmentation reflecting working rhythm and density reflecting working tempo. The working condition had characteristics known to cause stress and less wellbeing, which counteracts teachers sensitiveness to adapt to novelties and a reflective practice. This may jeopardize future professional development and thus digitalization of schools.