This theoretical paper offers a conceptual interpretation of the Technological, Pedagogical, and Content Knowledge (TPCK) framework to include the role of context within practical classroom applications. Our interpretation suggests that the importance of these three knowledge bases fluctuate within each stage of teachers' planning and instruction,…

This study focuses on quantifying the quality of mathematics teaching in 183 randomly selected sixth grade classrooms: 100 from the North West province of South Africa and 83 from South East Botswana. The teaching quality is measured by coding videotaped lessons for three different components: mathematical proficiency, level of cognitive demand,…

A teacher education program offers opportunities to learn (OTL) consistent with its vision of what teachers need to know and be able to do. The "Teacher Education and Development Study: Learning to Teach Mathematics" of the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement provides, for the first time, the…

When teachers start their first positions, they enter schools armed with what they believe are the most important elements of teaching: lesson plans, teaching strategies, good classroom management, and effective instruction and assessment. They usually feel confident about their content area knowledge and believe that if they follow the…

The challenge of preparing novice primary teachers for teaching in an educational environment, where science education has low status and many teachers have limited science content knowledge and lack the confidence to teach science, is great. This paper reports on an innovation involving a sustained simulation in an undergraduate science education…

An external panel that includes several prominent critics of teacher education has been tapped to craft the performance standards for the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP), the new organization's leaders announced last week. Among the standards under consideration: how programs ensure that candidates know their content;…

Pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) has particular relevance for understanding the factors that contribute to high-quality teaching behaviors. This study sought to explore the relationship between teachers' PCK and students' opportunities related to learning outcomes in primary school physical education (PE), during ball game instruction. Data…

Attending professional development programmes can support teachers in applying new strategies for teaching mathematics and statistics. This study investigated (a) the extent to which the participants in a professional development programme subsequently used the techniques they had learned when teaching mathematics and statistics and (b) the…

The purpose of the authors in this review is to examine how teacher-related, context-related, and project-related conditions interact in successful cases of technology integration projects in social studies classrooms. A close examination of different dimensions of these conditions in the implementation of 33 successful cases of…

Against a background which recognises pedagogical content knowledge as the distinctive element of teacher competence/expertise, this theoretical essay argues for its central construct--that of transformation--to be understood by teachers and teacher educators in psychological terms (as was originally proposed by Dewey). Transformation requires…

The relationship between primary teachers' subject knowledge and their approaches to teaching is an ongoing concern. This study reviews the relationship between prospective teachers' subject knowledge in the topic of area and their approaches to teaching that topic. The research presents case studies of four primary prospective teachers on a…

Empirical evidence suggests that successful teacher professional development programs are intensive, ongoing, and connected to practice; focused on specific subject content; and foster strong working relationships among teachers. They support teacher motivation so that the acquired skills continue to be practiced in class. These critical elements…

In the framework of a development cooperation program on quality of education in Vietnam, a professional development trajectory for teacher educators on the use of information and communication technology (ICT) in education was developed and implemented over the course of a three-year program. We describe how the framework on "Technological…

Technology integration is a major trend in contemporary education practice. When undertaking technology integration in classrooms, a first-order barrier and a second-order barrier, as proposed by Ertmer (1999), can hinder its implementation. The first-order barrier is external, such as lack of adequate access, time, training and institutional…

The purpose of this study was to examine elementary physical education teachers' content knowledge of physical activity and health-related fitness. Sixty-four female and 24 male teachers completed the Appropriate Physical Activity and Health-Related Fitness test. Descriptive statistics results indicated that the mean percentage score for the test…