Teaching Evidence-Based Subject Didactics in Primary Teacher Education

Authors

Keywords:

primary teacher education, subject didactics model, evidence-based teaching, scoping literature review

Abstract

For contemporary teaching, teachers need a good knowledge of pedagogy, a content knowledge, subject methodology and assessment. Although subject didactics has become an independent research area with interdisciplinary dimensions, only very few studies focus on the teaching of subject didactics. With the aim of developing a theoretical model for systematic treatment of subject didactics, a scoping literature review was implemented for analysing scientific literature. Twenty-five articles were chosen from different databases in the field of study. Data analyses revealed three domains of subject didactics: content knowledge, pedagogical content knowledge and knowledge of subject-specific assessment. These domains included various components which were used for developing a theoretical model for teaching subject didactics within the framework of primary teacher education. The results indicate how to organise the courses of subject didactics for primary teachers at universities. Firstly, teachers’ content knowledge and pedagogical knowledge should be treated in an integrated way. Secondly, integrating pedagogical knowledge with subject didactics enables the shaping of teacher education of students to understand the teaching profession at an early stage. Thirdly, studying subject didactics on the theoretical and empirical level is the driving force for developing syllabi in primary teacher education.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Author Biographies

Esta Sikkal, University of Tartu

Esta Sikkal is a teacher of Didactic and Teaching Practice in Primary Education in the Institute of Education, at the University of Tartu (Estonia). Her research themes is Didactic and Multilingualism. She teaches the following courses at the University of Tartu: Teaching Practice in several programs, Didactic in Teaching Practice in Primary Education, Non-native Student in Kindergarten. She has participated in the international research projects.

Irja Vaas, University of Tartu

Irja Vaas is a lecturer in Handicraft and Home Economics Didactics in the Institute of Education, at the University of Tartu (Estonia). The field of her research is connected with teachers’ professional development, early childhood education and the teaching of creative subjects in basic school. She has participated in several international research projects which aim is to analyse teachers’ teaching practices. 

Tiia Krass, University of Tartu

Tiia Krass is a teacher of English for primary education in the Institute of Education, at the University of Tartu (Estonia). Her field of research is English language, children’s literature and teaching methodology in primary education. She has been involved with supervising students’ school practices, focusing on instructional strategies. She has participated in some international research projects which aim to analyse different countries’ methodological approaches and student teachers’ teaching practices.

References

Arksey, H., & O’Malley, L. (2005). Scoping studies: Towards a methodological framework. International Journal of Social Research Methodology: Theory & Practice, 8(1), 19–32.
Ball, D. L., Thames, M. H., & Phelps,G. (2008). Content knowledge for teaching: What makes it special? Journal of Teacher Education, 59, 389–407.
Bohlmann, M. (2016). Science Education: Empirie, Kulturen und Mechanismen der Didaktik der Naturwissenschaften (Studien zum Physik- und Chemielernen, 211(10/12), 44–50.
Bonnet, A. (2009). Die Dokumentarische Methode in der Unterrichtsforschung: ein integratives Forschungsinstrument für Strukturrekonstruktion und Kompetenzanalyse. Social Science Open Access Repository. Retrieved from https://www.ssoar.info/ssoar/handle/document/33987
Deng, Z. (2018). Pedagogical content knowledge reconceived: Bringing curriculum thinking into the conversation on teachers' content knowledge. Teaching and Teacher Education, 72, 155–164.
Dijkers, M. (2015). What is a Scoping Review? KT Update, 4(1). Retrieved from http://ktdrr.org/products/update/v4n1
Doyle, A., Seery, N., Gumaelius, L., Canty, D., & Hartell, E. (2019). Reconceptualising PCK research in D&T education: proposing a methodological framework to investigate enacted practice. International Journal of Technology and Design Education, 29(3), 473–491.
Eberhardt, J. (2013). Interkulturelle Kompetenzen im Fremdsprachenunterricht. Auf dem Weg zu einem Kompetenzmodell für die Bildungsstandards In: Zeitschrift für Interkulturellen Fremdsprachenunterricht, 20(1). TU Darmstadt.
Gess-Newsome, J. (2017). A model of teacher professional knowledge and skill including PCK. In A. Berry, P. Friedrichsen, & J. Loughran (Eds.), Re-examining pedagogical content knowledge in science education (pp. 28–42). New York, NY: Routledge.
Heitzmann, A. (2013). Entwicklung und Etablierung der Fachdidaktik in der schweizerischen Lehrerinnen- und Lehrerbildung: Überlegungen zu Rolle und Bedeutung, Analyse des Ist-Zustands und Reflexionen für eine produktive Weiterentwicklung. Beiträge zur Lehrerinnen- und Lehrerbildung 31(1), 6–17. Retrieved from https://www.pedocs.de/frontdoor.php?source_opus=13830
Kansanen, P., & Meri, M. (1999). The didactic relation in the teaching-studying-learning process. In B. Hudson, F. Buchberger, P. Kansanen, & H. Seel (Eds.), Didaktik/Fachdidaktik as Science(-s) of the Teaching Profession. TNTEE Publications, 2(1), 107–116
Kirschner, S. (2016). Professionelle Kompetenz von Lehrkäften. PLUS LUCIS. Retrieved from https://www.univie.ac.at/pluslucis/PlusLucis/162/S15.pdf
Klafki, W. (2000). School Quality, School Program, and Teacher Self-Evaluation. European Education, 31(4), 73–91.
Meijer, P. C. (2013). Kogenud õpetaja praktiline teadmine õpetajakoolituse osana. Eesti Haridusteaduste Ajakiri, 1, 8–24. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.12697/eha.2013.1.02
Meschede, N., Fiebranz, A., Moller, K., & Steffensky, M. (2017). Teachers' professional vision, pedagogical content knowledge and beliefs: On its relation and differences between pre-service and in-service teachers. Teaching and Teacher Education, 66, 158–170.
Mishra, P. ja Koehler, M.J. (2006). Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge: A framework for teacher knowledge. Teachers College Record, 108(6), 1017-1054.
Niermann, A. (2017). Professionswissen von Lehrerinnen und Lehrern des Mathematik- und Sachunterrichts. Retrieved from https://www.pedocs.de/frontdoor.php?source_opus=12587
Ozmantar, M. F. & Akkoç, H. (2017). Voices and values in shaping the subjectivity of pedagogical content knowledge. Cogent Education, 4, 1401195, Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1080/2331186X.2017.1401195.
Parchmann, I. (2013). Wissenschaft Fachdidaktik. – Eine besondere Herausforderung. Beiträge zur Lehrerinnen- und Lehrerbildung, 31(1), 31–41. Retrieved from https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/83643118.pdf
Park, S., & Oliver, J. S. (2008). Revisiting the conceptualisation of pedagogical content knowledge (PCK): PCK as a conceptual tool to understand teachers as professionals. Research in Science Education, 38(3), 261–284. doi:10.1007/s11165-007-9049-
Porter, A. (2006). Curriculum assessment. In J. L. Green, G. Camilli, & E. L. Elmore (Eds.), Handbook of complementary methods in education research (pp. 141–159). Washington, DC: American Educational Research Association.
Reinfried, S., Mathis, C., & Kattmann, U. (2009). Das Modell der Didaktischen Rekonstruktion. Eine innovative Methode zur fachdidaktischen Erforschung und Entwicklung von Unterricht. Beiträge zur Lehrerinnen- und Lehrerbildung, 27(3), 404–414.
Richardson, G.M., Byrne, L.L., & Liang, L.L. (2018). Making learning visible: Developing preservice teachers' pedagogical content knowledge and teaching efficacy beliefs in environmental education. Applied Environmental Education & Communication, 17(1), 41–56.
Rollnick, M. (2017). Learning About Semi-Conductors for Teaching—the Role Played by Content Knowledge in Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK) Development. Research in Science Education, 47, 833–868. doi: 10.1007/s11165-016-9530-1
Rosenkränzer, F., Hörsch, C., Schuler, S., & Riess, W. (2017). Student teachers’ pedagogical content knowledge for teaching systems thinking: effects of different interventions. International Journal of Science Education, 39(14), 1932–1951.
Shulman, L. (1986). Those who understand: Knowledge growth in teaching. Educational Researcher, 15(2), 4–14. doi:10.3102/0013189X015002004
Shulman, L. (1987). Knowledge and teaching: Foundations of the new reform. Harvard Educational Review, 57, 1–23.
Studies in Social and Educational Sciences from 2008 to 2013. From Theory into Practice. (2014). [Sotsiaal- ja kasvatusteaduste valdkonna uuringud 2008–2013. Teooriast praktikasse.] (2014). Eesti Teadusagentuur. Retrieved from https://www.etag.ee/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/kasvatusuuringud.pdf.
Stender, A., Brückmann, M., & Neumann, K. (2017) Transformation of topic-specific professional knowledge into personal pedagogical content knowledge through lesson planning. International Journal of Science Education, 39(12), 1690–1714.
Tröbst, S., Kleickmann, T., Heinze, A., Bernholt, A., Rink, R., & Kunter, M. (2018). Teacher Knowledge Experiment: Testing Mechanisms Underlying the Formation of Preservice Elementary School Teachers’ Pedagogical Content Knowledge Concerning Fractions and Fractional Arithmetic. Journal of Educational Psychology, 110(8), 1049–1065.
Unt, I. (2013). Didaktika. [Didactics]. In Mikser, R. (Ed.), Haridusleksikon. Eesti Keele Sihtasutus.
Vollmer, (2014). Fachdidaktik and the Development of Generalised Subject Didactics in Germany. Retrieved from https://journals.openedition.org/educationdidactique/1861?lang=en

Downloads

Published

2021-07-14

How to Cite

Sikkal, E., Uibu, K., Vaas, I., & Krass, T. (2021). Teaching Evidence-Based Subject Didactics in Primary Teacher Education. International Electronic Journal of Elementary Education, 13(5), 639–649. Retrieved from https://www.iejee.com/index.php/IEJEE/article/view/1401

Issue

Section

Articles