Being a Student of Teaching: Practitioner Research and Study Groups

Bullough, Robert V.; Smith, Leigh K.

doi:10.1007/978-981-10-0369-1_9

Cited by 7 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 117 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…In response to recognizing these limitations, scholars have argued for more self‐directed learning, in which teachers seek learning based on their personal interests, concerns, and perceived needs (Bubb & Earley, ; Bullough & Smith, ). Teachers, they contend, should have more control over the direction and purpose of their own learning.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Participation in formal PD opportunities is also often mandated, associated with reform initiatives rather than the needs of individual teachers (Bolam & McMahon, ; Day & Sachs, ). As a result, these experiences are often criticized by teachers as irrelevant to their individual needs and practice (Bullough & Smith, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It may be that in addition to learning through formal PD, more self‐directed, individualized learning occurs when teachers encounter opportunities to learn within the context of their own practice, seeking to better understand the subject matter they are assigned to teach (Bullough & Smith, ). This self‐directed learning may be more sustained, less costly, and more aligned with individual teacher needs than formal PD prescribed and provided by external experts (Grundy & Robison, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Elementary teachers’ science subject matter knowledge across the teacher career cycle

2018

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Although widely touted as important, there is little evidence regarding the influence of teaching experience on elementary teachers' science subject matter knowledge (SMK). To better understand this phenomenon, we administered an assessment of science topics taught in the fifth and sixth grades to 169 preservice teachers, 231 fifthgrade teachers, and 208 sixth-grade teachers. We then compared the mean scores of teachers at different stages in the career cycle using one-way and two-way ANOVA and explored the relationship between SMK scores and years of teaching experience using regression analysis. Findings indicate that (i) being assigned to a specific grade level had an impact on teachers' SMK for topics included in the grade level, (ii) teachers' SMK scores were lower later in their careers for both science topics they had never taught and for science topics they were responsible for teaching, and (iii) results differed for fifth and sixth grades. This study adds to the existing literature through the examination of a large sample of elementary teachers, with teachers of varying years of experience, while focusing on the science topics these teachers are responsible for teaching. The results of this study provide strong evidence that (i) years of experience teaching specific science topics is associated with the development of teachers' knowledge of these topics, and (ii) teaching experience, what teachers do in the context of their everyday practice, can be an effective means of self-directed learning for teachers. There is also evidence that this influence is not uniform across years of teaching experience or science topics taught. These findings raise important implications about future research into the mechanism of SMK development through teaching experience and teacher grade-level assignments.

show abstract

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Elementary teachers’ science subject matter knowledge across the teacher career cycle

2018

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Therefore, we argue on the basis of our study, there is a need for rich opportunities for the student teachers during their teacher education to jointly reflect upon and discuss experiences from their vocational training with a focus on the interrelation of teaching and student learning, as a contribution to the development of their professional knowledge for science teaching. In addition, our study contributes to earlier presented arguments for teacher education concerning student teachers' learning from field experiences (Bullough & Smith, 2016;Darling-Hammond et al, 2005;Loughran, 2014), by eliciting how teacher knowledge in terms of PCK could be displayed in a collective setting. The knowledge shared by individuals in the discussions both changes within the discussion and evolves over time during our study in the one-year teacher education program.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 61%

“…Loughran (2014) emphasizes the importance of student teachers' opportunities to learn from teaching experiences instead of just having experiences. This is also in line with designing teacher education to promote student teachers' learning in and from practice (Bullough & Smith, 2016;Darling-Hammond, Hammerness, Grossman, Rust, & Shulman, 2005). Reflective group conversations could therefore be an important way to learn from field experiences.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 71%

Professional Knowledge for Teaching in Student Teachers’ Conversations about Field Experiences

Sjöberg

Nyberg

2019

Journal of Science Teacher Education

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Professional knowledge for science teaching develops over time and interplays with professional experiences in field. In the present study, we explore student teachers' reflective conversation upon teaching experiences, with pedagogical content knowledge, PCK, as an analytical lens. The empirical data is based on nine meetings, with groups of 3-6 student teachers with an academic degree, at three different periods during their one-year short-track teacher education program. The findings show how student teachers focus on the PCK component instructional strategies in their discussion. A difference between the different sets of meetings is the increased presence of discussions regarding assessment of student learning. The findings also elicit different ways of relating components of PCK in varying contexts. The shift over time from a focus on teachers' instructional strategies to also including students' understanding indicates a development toward becoming a teacher. Even though a structured discussion with theoretically grounded didactic questions is established, it is challenging to deepen the discussion when the student teachers' varying teaching experiences are present at the same time. Nevertheless, the study shows the possibilities of structured group discussions about field experiences in a collegial setting in a shorttrack teacher education program, regarding student teachers' development as "becoming teachers."

show abstract

Exploring how a digitally skilled teacher’s self-understanding influences his professional learning strategies. A research cooperation between a teacher and a researcher

Fransson

Norman

2021

Teacher Development

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Being a Student of Teaching: Practitioner Research and Study Groups

Cited by 7 publications

References 117 publications

Elementary teachers’ science subject matter knowledge across the teacher career cycle

Elementary teachers’ science subject matter knowledge across the teacher career cycle

Professional Knowledge for Teaching in Student Teachers’ Conversations about Field Experiences

Exploring how a digitally skilled teacher’s self-understanding influences his professional learning strategies. A research cooperation between a teacher and a researcher

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About