Abstract:

Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK), introduced by Shulman (1986), is crucial for teaching quality and student outcomes (Kunter et al., 2013). Shulman highlighted PCK as the key difference between a subject matter expert and an effective teacher, requiring both deep content understanding and the ability to implement effective teaching strategies.

Since its introduction, PCK has been further developed by several authors (Berry, Friedrichsen, & Loughran, 2015). Its elusive nature (Kind, 2009) necessitates instruments to make it visible. Developing robust tools to measure PCK is essential for improving teacher education programs. This presentation details the development and validation of a rubric to measure the PCK of preservice primary teachers.

The development of the PCK rubric followed a systematic process involving several key steps. First, a comprehensive review of existing literature on PCK and related assessment tools was conducted. This review provided a foundation for identifying the key dimensions of PCK relevant to preservice primary teachers. Based on the literature review, the critical dimensions of PCK were identified, including curricular knowledge, knowledge about the student, knowledge about instructional strategies, and assessment techniques. For each dimension, specific performance criteria were established to capture the range of preservice teacher capabilities.

The rubric's validation involved several phases to ensure its reliability and validity. An initial version of the rubric was reviewed by a panel of education experts, whose feedback guided the refinement of criteria and descriptors. The revised rubric was subsequently pilot tested with a sample of preservice teachers, using two different instruments for assessment: i) CoRe (Content Representation) (Loughran et al., 2004), which requires preservice teachers to select and justify key ideas essential for teaching a specific topic; and ii) lesson plans, specifically for a one-and-a-half-hour lesson on the respiratory system for third-grade students. The topic was chosen based on its familiarity to students, its abstract nature, and its inclusion in the Portuguese curriculum.

Inter-rater reliability was assessed by having multiple evaluators use the rubric to score the same set of teaching artifacts. The consistency of scores across different raters was analyzed to ensure the rubric's reliability. The validation process demonstrated that the PCK rubric is a reliable and valid tool for assessing the PCK of preservice teachers.

References:
[1] Berry, A., Friedrichsen, P., & Loughran, J. (Eds.). (2015). Re-examining Pedagogical Content Knowledge in Science Education (1st ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315735665
[2] Kind, V. (2009). Pedagogical content knowledge in science education: potential and perspectives for progress. Studies in science education, 45(2), 169-204.
[3] Kunter, M., Klusmann, U., Baumert, J., Richter, D., Voss, T., & Hachfeld, A. (2013). Professional competence of teachers: Effects on instructional quality and student development. Journal of Educational Psychology, 105(3), 805–820.
[4] Loughran, J., Mulhall, P., & Berry, A. (2004). In search of pedagogical content knowledge in science: Developing ways of articulating and documenting professional practice. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 41(4), 370–391.
[5] Shulman, L. (1986). Those who understand: Knowledge growth in teaching. Educational Researcher, 15, 4–14.

Keywords:

Pedagogical Content Knowledge, Preservice teachers Education, Rubric.