Secondary chemistry teacher learning: precursors for and mechanisms of pedagogical conceptual change

Abstract

Despite years of research and practice inspired by chemistry education research, a recent report shows that US secondary instruction is not aligned with current national reform-based efforts. One means to mitigate this discrepancy is focusing on pedagogical conceptual change, its precursors (higher self-efficacy and pedagogical discontentment), and the subtleties of its mechanisms (assimilation and accommodation). In this study, we investigate the final reflections of participants (N = 35) who completed our professional development program known as the VisChem Institute (VCI). Our results show that Johnstone's triangle as well as evidence, explanations, and models can be conducive for stimulating pedagogical discontentment among VCI teachers who exhibit higher self-efficacy. In addition, how VCI teachers assimilate and/or accommodate reform-based chemistry teaching ideas problematizes conventional assumptions, broadens application of novel theories, and is germane to introductory chemistry learning environments across the world. Implications and recommendations for chemistry instruction and research at both secondary and tertiary levels are discussed.

Investigating Teacher–Teacher Feedback: Uncovering Useful Socio-pedagogical Norms for Reform-Based Chemistry Instruction

“…Figure 4 shows the frequencies of CF codes and their prevalence among VCI-2 teachers. Regarding the nature of teacher−teacher feedback, the greatest number was Praise (93) with the fewest being Critique (7). Describe (57), Elaborate (47), and Suggest (41) were also more frequent than other CF codes such as Recollect (14) and Take Up (10).…”

“…Feedback should assist teachers in expanding their views so the epistemological differences between traditional and reform-based teaching can be more easily discerned. 54 Teacher−teacher feedback should therefore instigate a sense of pedagogical discontentment, 55 giving rise to pedagogical conceptual change 7 and even a reshaping of one's core teaching identity. 56 Thompson and Zeuli 57 furthermore described coinciding requirements for teachers' transformative rethinking.…”

“…81 Doing so may be related to building socio-pedagogical norms that help teachers breach surface-level discourse and engage in conversational functions such as Critique, Suggest, Elaborate, and Take Up, in ways similar to what we had observed in our PD despite not using social protocols or sentence stems. In this manner, teachers can potentially achieve pedagogical discontentment 55 and catalyze their pedagogical conceptual change 7 toward reform-based chemistry instruction. Furthermore, all seven conversational functions (when filtered for chemistry specificity) were prominently characterized by the Particulate level.…”

Investigating the mangle of teaching oxidation–reduction with the VisChem approach: problematising symbolic traditions that undermine chemistry concept development

“…It is essential to note that accommodation is operationalised for this study in MoP and in a manner dissimilar to the role of accommodation found within the conceptual change model (Strike and Posner, 1992) or in pedagogical conceptual change (Wu and Yezierski, 2023).…”

“…Specific, accessible, and practical redox teaching moves that uses the limitations of the symbolic level for warranting sensemaking with the particulate also require further investigation (Wu and Yezierski, 2022b). By problematizing current epistemologies associated with redox, we can begin generating the necessary precursors for pedagogical conceptual change towards reform-based instructional practices (Wu and Yezierski, 2023).…”