Fostering Teachers’ Learning through Materials Featuring Research on Early Cancer Diagnosis as a Context

Abstract

Development of teacher pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) is a crucial aspect of teacher learning that can be supported by high-quality materials. In this study, 16 chemistry teachers in The Netherlands used teaching and learning materials situated in the context of research on tumor detection. Teachers' encounters with these learning materials and the development of teacher PCK were investigated using teacher logbooks, cardsorting activities, content representation (CoRe) tasks, and semistructured teacher interviews. Analysis of the results showed that most teachers used strategies that were new to them and made few adaptations to the teaching sequence and activities proposed in the teacher guide. Moreover, growth in teacher PCK for chemical bonding was observed, primarily related to instructional strategies and representations, and to a lesser extent related to three other PCK components (knowledge of curriculum, student understanding, and assessment). The data suggest that the materials facilitate teacher learning by enabling positive classroom experiences and by supporting teachers to expand their instructional repertoire for the topic of chemical bonding, in particular hydrogen bonding.