An investigation into beginner teachers' knowledge and learning study

Durden, Guy (2016). An investigation into beginner teachers' knowledge and learning study. University of Birmingham. Ph.D.

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Abstract

Following Shulman (1986a), teachers’ knowledge is often divided into Content Knowledge (CK) and Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK). However, the operationalizing of these ideas in initial teacher education has been hampered by difficulties in defining CK and PCK, understanding their interrelationship and finding effective ways of using these ideas to support Beginner Teachers’ (BTs’) development. This study uses Phenomenography/Variation theory (Pang & Marton, 2003, 2005) to address these difficulties in the context of BTs of economics and business studies in England in 2011/2. The study found that Learning Study has a statistically significant, medium/large effect on BTs’ CK and PCK in comparison to conventional teacher education. This suggests that it should be more widely incorporated into teacher education programmes in England. In addition, the results of the study confirm previous evidence of a positive association between CK and PCK and weaknesses in BTs’ conceptual understanding of a fundamental topic in their subject domain (price). No association was found between BTs’ degree classifications and their CK or PCK either at the beginning or the end of training. In drawing these conclusions an approach to describing conceptions of price is developed that explicitly accounts for the ‘internal horizon’ or context of the phenomenon.

Type of Work:

Thesis (Doctorates > Ph.D.)

Award Type:

Doctorates > Ph.D.

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