Background/Purpose Shulman (1987) described pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) as the interaction of pedagogy and content by the teacher in ways that make content understandable to learners. Yet, PCK has been described differently in many studies (Ball et al., 2009; Marks, 1990) leading to a lack of clarity of the concept . This ambiguity is reflected in problems of definition that in turn result in a literature that is not always talking about the same concept.
Method This presentation uses a conceptual analysis of PCK. Drawing upon findings from Alvazo (2008), Lee (2010), and Kim (2011) and grounded in the behavior analytic literature PCK can be conceptualized in terms of two continuums: (a) ranging from less to more mature, and (b) ranging from less to more effective. The primary units for this analysis are inter-task and intra-task variations that are analyzed within and across lessons.
Analysis/Results Data from Alvazo (2008), Lee (2010), and Kim (2011) repeatedly (a) the content knowledge is a immediately alterable variable in changing PCK, (b) PCK varies according to content expertise and is reflected in the maturity and appropriateness of the task selection and task representations.
Conclusions These findings support the contention by Ward (2009) that PCK is “a focal point, a locus, or an event in time (and therefore specific contextually) where teachers make decisions in terms of pedagogy and content based on their understandings of a number of knowledge bases (e.g., of understanding students, of curriculum, of context, of content, and of pedagogy).
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