Prospective elementary teachers' comprehension of mathematics instruction

This article reports on a study that investigated prospective elementary teachers' knowledge and convictions regarding content, pedagogy, and pupil needs as well as on their rationales for the teaching of mathematics. Data collected through journals is qualitatively analysed and interpreted to understand common views on ‘ideal’ mathematics classes. The findings are used as a basis for a broader sociological discussion of the school's role in a changing environment. Participants in this study tend to value mathematics classes mainly in terms of the degree of pupil enjoyment. Consequently, they comprehend the teacher's role as beyond instruction: the teacher as an entertainer. This is discussed by confronting the two conceptions of school as a locus for serious learning, and of school as a ‘playhouse’. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

师范生教师专业知能培养策略研究

分析了教育信息化时代教师专业知能的内容,指出师范生教师专业知能,既要获得学科知识和教育知识,更要具有运用信息技术教授学科知识的能力,具体表现在专业理念、专业知识、专业技能、专业实践、专业发展能力等五个方面.并以思想建设和能力建设为出发点,从重构师范生的教育教学理念及观点和构建合理的课程体系两个方面,研究了师范生教师专业知能的培养策略.     

Preservice elementary teachers' explicit beliefs about multiplication and division

This study, conducted in the United States, was designed to assess the extent to which the beliefs, multiplication always makes bigger and division always makes smaller, are explicitly held by preservice elementary teachers. Paper and pencil instruments were administered to 136 preservice elementary teachers in a large university in the southeastern United States. Responses on the instruments and in interviews provide insight into the sources of preservice teachers' beliefs and into the relationship among preservice teachers' beliefs, computational skills, and performance on word problems.     

Pre-service and in-service teachers' metacognitive knowledge about problem-solving strategies

The present study based on Antonietti, A., Ignazi, S., & Perego, P. (2000). Metacognitive knowledge about problem-solving methods. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 70, 1–16 methodology with the aim to examine primary school teachers' metacognitive knowledge about problem-solving strategies. A sample of 338 in-service (172) and pre-service (166) teachers participated in the study. They were asked to give on a five-point scale frequency, efficacy, and facility estimates for the application of five problem-solving strategies in 3 kinds of problems (interpersonal, practical, and study problems). The results are in accordance with Antonietti, A., Ignazi, S., & Perego, P. (2000). Metacognitive knowledge about problem-solving methods. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 70, 1–16 evidence. They, also, stressed the possible role of age along with work experience in the formation of beliefs about strategic behavior.     

Prospective teachers' initial conceptions about pupils' understanding of science and mathematics

Earlier reports have shown that prospective teachers' conceptions about teaching science to a high degree are resistant and do not change substantially during the teacher‐training programme. In our investigation we elucidate the prospective teachers' initial conceptions about pupils' understanding of science and mathematics. We applied ‘The Lesson Preparation Method' and used a phenomenographic approach in order to reveal the range of conceptions that the prospective teachers hold. A third of the prospective teachers did not consider pupils' conceptions when planning lessons. The rest of the 32 participants expressed awareness; some of the prospective teachers even referred to subject‐specific teaching experience. Also regarding the prospective teachers' conceptions about pupils' knowledge and beliefs, as well as about pupils' difficulties, there was a significant diversity. By raising these issues about pedagogical content knowledge the prospective teachers' conceptions can be extended and developed during the education.     

An investigation of student teachers' knowledge about their own learning

Twenty-nine student teachers from a large metropolitan university in Queensland, Australia were interviewed at the beginning (Time 1) and end (Time 2) of a year-long graduate diploma in education to investigate the nature of their knowledge about learning and changes in such knowledge over the year. At Time 1 and Time 2 most students thought learning should be meaningful and preferred to use transformative learning approaches. However, students indicated a willingness to engage in reproductive approaches to learning if the content to be learned was uninteresting, workloads were high, or assessment was examination-focussed. The results also indicated that while many students did not experience significant changes in their knowledge about learning over the year, they believed that transformative learning had become more of a focus for them. Investigating student teachers' knowledge about learning has implications for effective learning in teacher education programs.     

教师创新素质初探

时代呼唤创新型人才。培养造就大批创新型人才迫切需要提高教师的创新素质。但何谓教师创新素质,其内在结构如何,它具有哪些功能,这些问题人们还不太清楚。弄清这些问题,对于提高教师创新素质具有重要意义。     

Prospective teachers' metaphorical conceptualizations of learner

This study investigated the metaphorical images that prospective teachers in Turkey formulated to describe learners. Participants (N = 2847) completed the prompt “A student is like … because …” to indicate their conceptualizations of learner. Data were analyzed both qualitatively and quantitatively. Altogether 98 well-articulated metaphorical images were identified and 12 conceptual themes were developed. Significant associations were detected between teacher trainees' gender, programme type and status in programme, and the 12 conceptual themes. Metaphors provided a cognitive lens into prospective teachers' thinking and cognition. Implications for teacher education and further research are discussed.     

教师知识与教师专业化

制约教师专业化有许多因素,既有外在社会因素,也有教师内在的信念、知识和能力因素。本文从内部着手,通过对教师素质构成的分析和对教师知识的分类,认为在以往的教师教育中只注意到教师的“内容知识”,而没有认识到教师的“实践性知识”,提出应从提升教师实践性知识来促进教师职业的专业化,并给出了相应的措施。     

Using teachers' prior knowledge,attitudes and beliefs to develop in-service teacher education courses for inclusion

This paper examines one important dimension of inclusive education: the development of in-service teacher education courses. Using an example from Cyprus, it discusses the issue of contextualizing teacher training courses to suit teachers' prior knowledge, attitudes and beliefs about inclusion. The paper considers some of the findings of a survey about issues relating to inclusion. The findings suggest that teachers' conceptualizations of inclusion are problematic. According to the findings, teachers tend to think on the basis of a medical and charity model and they favour special schooling for specific groups of children. The discussion considers how a training course for inclusion can be academically robust and professionally useful, while at the same time taking into consideration teachers' prior knowledge and expectations.     

Engineering teachers' pedagogical content knowledge

The aim of the study was to discover the essential characteristics of engineering teachers' pedagogical content knowledge by studying teachers' conceptions of their students' ideas of moment. To compare the conceptions maintained by teachers with those of their students, the most common difficulties experienced by first-year engineering students in understanding the moments of forces were looked at. The data on students' conceptions were collected by means of a questionnaire. In addition, four experienced teachers were given the same questionnaire as the students and then were asked to write what they expected the students' answers to be. The students' answers and the teachers' conceptions of their students' potential answers were compared. It was found that although the teachers originally appeared to be familiar with their students' conceptions, they were rather astonished by the general pattern of the students' thinking. It is planned that the information gathered about the teachers' pedagogical content knowledge will eventually be used to improve engineering teacher training.     

Attempting to document teachers' professional knowledge

This paper explores ways of uncovering and documenting teachers' professional knowledge. Through a research project that has worked with a number of teachers over an extensive period of time, serious attempts have been made to make the (often) tacit nature of teachers' knowledge more explicit in ways that might begin to address the question of what a knowledge base in teaching might look like. The paper examines methodological issues that have guided this research and illustrates how the knowledge of teachers can be articulated in ways that might help to clarify particular features of practice. An important aspect of the research reported in this paper is the need to have a language of teaching that is common to participants. Therefore, the research reported in this paper offers one way of considering this issue and offers a methodology for exploration and further development whilst simultaneously highlighting some aspects of the problematic nature of developing such a methodology.     

Developing science teachers' pedagogical content knowledge

This article discusses the concept of pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) within the context of science teaching. First, an attempt is made to define this concept within the tradition of research on teachers' craft knowledge and to identify possible purposes of research on PCK. From this point of view, recent research on science teaching is investigated. This investigation identifies teaching experience as the major source of PCK, whereas adequate subject-matter knowledge appears to be a prerequisite. Finally, an empirical study is presented which focuses on PCK with respect to a specific topic—that is, chemical equilibrium. The effects on teachers' PCK of participation in an in-service workshop and conducting an experimental course in classroom practice are reported. This leads to the identification of elements of PCK teachers can use to promote student understanding. It is concluded that research on topic-related PCK may complement research on student learning of specific topics. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 35: 673–695, 1998.     

谈教师教学的变化技能

心理学研究表明,变化刺激能抓住听众的注意力。教学要有变化,教学需要变化。变化技能是广大教师应该掌握和具备的一种行为方式与能力。目前我国许多教师在教学中缺少对此方面的认识,更缺少对此技能的科学操作。阐述变化技能及其意义,进一步分析其结构构成,内涵作用和应用原则等,就能使广大教师科学地掌握教学变化技能,不断提高教育教学效果。     

Preservice elementary teachers' conceptions of the causes of seasons

This study used both a written procedure and a procedure of models with verbal explanation to investigate 49 preservice elementary teachers' conceptions of what causes the seasons. Only one person each provided a response on each procedure which reflected a scientific conception. A total of 39 students provided alternative conception responses on the written procedure: 42 students provided responses judged to reflect alternative conceptions on the models with verbal explanation procedure. The distance of the earth from the sun was the most commonly expressed alternative conception on both procedures. Many students were not consistent in providing a particular alternative conception for the two procedures, which indicates that the alternative conceptions expressed may not be firmly held. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Mental models of attachment as a part of kindergarten student teachers' practical knowledge about caregiving

The present study investigated beginning kindergarten student teachers' mental models of attachment as a part of their practical knowledge about caregiving. Mental models of attachment (i.e. how students construct their own attachment-related childhood experiences and relationships from their current perspective) were assessed with an Adult Attachment Interview. The participants were 82 female first-year students in the University of Helsinki. Forty-four per cent of the students were classified as dismissive of attachment, 43% as secure/autonomous, and 13% as preoccupied. The study also investigated student teachers' motives for entering kindergarten teacher education, and the possible relationship between students' mental models of attachment and their motives for entering the field. Participants' attachment status was significantly associated with their career preference, and the expression and complexity of their motives. Students with a secure/autonomous mental model of attachment were the most certain students concerning career choice, and they were the most likely to express both child-centred and self-centred motives for entering the education.     

对教师职业的认识分析

教师在教育工作中扮演着非常重要的角色,但是在现阶段,教师的职业地位以及工作的性质特点都随着社会的不断发展而存在着变化。本文主要通过分析教师如今职业规划以及工作的特点,希望能够促进公众对教师的了解,提高教师的职业素养。