The TPACK framework has gained popularity in guiding research regarding the assessment and development of teachers' competencies to teach with technology. Since theoretically, the framework is about teachers' knowledge for teaching using technology, effective ways of assessing this TPACK have been a subject of interest among researchers. This…

Science teachers' beliefs about teaching and learning are a vital component of teachers' professional competence and are often assumed to impact classroom practice. To date, these beliefs have been predominantly investigated regarding teaching and learning in general or for a particular science subject (e.g., physics). It remains to be determined…

Background: Research studies on facilitating professional development describe the knowledge and skills facilitators need to effectively attend to teachers' learning processes. In this context, some studies gave rise to the question how to design learning opportunities to prepare facilitators to support teachers' learning during professional…

Research over the last 15 years has reported that for professional development to be effective, in terms of changing teachers' knowledge and/or instructional strategies, it needs to be conducted taking into consideration the following factors: teachers' existing knowledge, experience and attitudes towards the professional development, school…

This article discusses some issues related to the professional development of Religious Education (RE) student teachers in initial teacher education based on empirical results on the development of the pedagogical thinking of Finnish RE student teachers during their teacher education. The article begins by describing the concept of professionalism…

Because pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) includes teachers' understanding of how students learn, or fail to learn, specific subject matter, the development of PCK is an important goal to focus on in professional development programs. The research literature clearly indicates the complex nature of PCK as a form of teachers' professional…

This study presents findings from the first cohort of teachers in a U.S. Department of Education Mathematics Science Partnership (MSP) grant designed to support the use of a standards-based elementary school mathematics curriculum, Investigations in Number, Data, and Space (Investigations). In line with the goals of the MSP program, the 84-hour…

Researchers have recently used traditional item response theory (IRT) models to measure mathematical knowledge for teaching (MKT). Some studies (e.g., Hill, 2007; Izsak, Orrill, Cohen, & Brown, 2010), however, have reported subgroups when measuring middle-grades teachers' MKT, and such groups violate a key assumption of IRT models. This study…

Student foundational knowledge of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) is formed in their elementary education. Paradoxically, many elementary teachers have constrained background knowledge, confidence, and efficacy for teaching STEM that may hamper student STEM learning. The association between teacher preparation to teach…

The aim of this article is to examine the role taken by the Institute for Learning (IfL) in England to promote the nature of professionalism in the lifelong learning sector. It raises the possibility that the decisions taken by the IfL, since its inception in 2002, are leading to the de-professionalisation of teachers. It is argued that what is…

The training of teachers in upper secondary education varies considerably dependent on whether training is undertaken as a secondary school teacher or as a teacher within the Further Education (FE) system. Indeed, until the late 1990s, the training of teachers in FE had been the focus of little regulation by Government. Differences also occur…

Recently, there have been increased calls for enhancing preschool children's mathematics knowledge along with increasing calls for preparing preschool teachers to meet the demands of new preschool mathematics curricula. This article describes the professional development program Starting Right: Mathematics in Preschools. Focusing on four episodes…

For over a decade, professional learning communities (PLCs) have been touted as an effective way to build upon the knowledge and skills of experienced teachers, yet much of the evidence base is derived from self-reports by practitioners. Although several generations of school reform (the standards movement, No Child Left Behind, and now the Common…

While pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) has been widely studied in the literature, there have been few studies that focus on content knowledge exclusively, and none that examine the interactions between new content knowledge and existing PCK. This study traced the interactions between five teachers' pedagogical content knowledge and novel…

What would happen if people found agreement around the world on what constitutes high-expertise teaching? For one thing, there would be a set of standards universally embraced that clearly defines core agreements about good teaching and learning. It would be obvious that proficiency in the knowledge, skills, and practices that comprise good…