This article presents an extension of the well-known TPACK model to describe the professional digital competencies of mathematics teachers. The extension leads to what we want to call MPC-model (Media–Pedagogy–Content) in the following. It additionally includes (1) the consideration of competencies instead of knowledge for a holistic description, (2) the integration of professional digital competencies in a broader context of professional media competencies (including explicitly analog and digital teaching media), (3) the description of concrete individual experiences with digital technology in context-bound subjective domains of experience, and (4) the cross-linking of concrete individual experiences about (digital) technology in specific (subjective) domains of experience. In this article, we first present a motivating literature overview leading to the research question: How can the TPACK model be extended to enable a qualitative description of professional digital competencies of mathematics teachers against the background of situated experiences? This extended framework is developed and presented in a detailed theoretical background. In the empirical part of the article, an exemplary application of the MPC-model is carried out in an explicative case study dealing with the reflections of a mathematics teacher on a planned lesson using virtual reality technology in a guided interview. The qualitative data is interpreted according to the systematic-extensional analysis method. The case study illustrates the importance of taking into account concrete situated experiences opening up a new reflective level analyzing the development of professional mathematics-specific digital competencies.

The development of curriculum materials that are also educative for teachers has been proposed as a strategy to support teachers learning to teach inquiry science. In this study, one seventh-grade teacher used five inquiry science units with varying support for teachers over a two-year period. Teacher journals, interviews, and classroom videotape were collected. Analysis focused on engagement in planning and teaching, pedagogical content knowledge, and the match to teacher learning needs. Findings indicate that this teacher’s ideas developed as she interacted with materials and her students. Information about student ideas, task- and idea-specific support, and model teacher language was most helpful. Supports for understanding goals, assessment, and the teacher’s role, particularly during discussions and group work, were most needed.

Learning progressions are the successively more sophisticated ways of thinking about an idea that follow one another over a broad span of time. This review examines the research on science teachers’ pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) in order to refine ideas about science teacher learning progressions and how to support them. Research published between 1986 and 2010 relevant to science teacher learning and PCK was examined for what ways teachers’ knowledge becomes more developed and what appears to be the sequence. Analysis indicates that it is helpful for teachers to think about learners first, then to focus on teaching, and points out the essential role of reflection for teachers to rearrange their ideas in ways that develop their PCK. This review takes a unique approach to thinking about research on what science teachers learn and can support teacher educators in designing professional programs that support beginning and advanced learning for science teachers.

It is considered important for students to participate in scientific practices to develop a deeper understanding of scientific ideas. Supporting students, however, in knowing and understanding the natural world in connection with generating and evaluating scientific evidence and explanations is not easy. In addition, writing in science can help students to understand such connections as they communicate what they know and how they know it. Although tools such as vee-maps can scaffold students’ efforts to design investigations, we know less about how these tools support students in connecting scientific ideas with the evidence they are generating, how these connections develop over time, or how writing can be used to encourage such connections. In this study, we explored students’ developing ability to reason scientifically by examining the relationship between students’ understanding of scientific phenomena and their understanding of how to generate and evaluate evidence for their ideas in writing. Three high school classes completed three investigations. One class used vee-mapping each time, one used vee-mapping once, and one did not use vee-mapping. Students’ maps and written reports were rated for understanding of relevant science procedural and conceptual ideas. Comparisons between groups and over time indicate a positive relationship between improved procedural and conceptual understanding. Findings also indicate that improved procedural understanding preceded improved conceptual understanding, and thus, multiple experiences were needed for students to connect evidence and explanation for science phenomena.

Online collaborative environments have the potential to transform how teachers are supported in their professional learning and work. Yet, many teachers fail to fully or productively participate in these opportunities. To address this challenge, A Learning Community of Teachers (ALCOT), an online professional collaboration environment, was designed to support mentors and leaders in providing guidance to novices as they learn to develop and share ideas online.

Project-Based Inquiry Science (PBIS) is a comprehensive technology-enhanced science curriculum for grades 6 through 8 (ages 12-14), designed based on foundations in the learning sciences. Most of its units were developed during the 1990's at Georgia Institute of Technology, Northwestern University, and University of Michigan. Over the past five years, researchers at these universities (and others) have been working to pull the units together into a curriculum that can be disseminated nationally (in the U.S.). During the last two years, we have been working closely with the publishing company, It's About Time, to bring the curriculum to publication. We present the research foundations of PBIS along with the pragmatics of incorporating individual units into an integrated curriculum appropriate that addresses the diverse requirements of 50 states while also addressing the diverse needs of learners.

As a community focused on ensuring excellence in science teacher education, most of us would identify ourselves as science teacher educators. This is, in part, because we teach methods courses, oversee field experiences, and provide professional development for science teachers; but, not everyone who contributes to teacher education would call themselves a teacher educator. For instance, most K-12 classroom teachers or college science faculty would not label themselves as teacher educators, even though they are important educators of teachers. In addition, science teacher education has attracted the attention of college deans, school principals, and community leaders as part of a national emphasis on improving science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education. These people also are not likely to consider themselves to be science teacher educators. In this editorial letter, I propose a framework for thinking about what defines us as science teacher educators so we can think more clearly about how to encourage active participation from a broader membership and guide the efforts of our potential partners in improving science teacher education.

Reformers seeking to increase student understanding and interest are looking to collaborative partnerships to support improved science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) teaching. At the college level, partnerships across colleges are encouraged by reformers in order to provide all students with strong content understanding, model recommended practices for future teachers, and increase participation by underrepresented groups in STEM careers. Collaborative curriculum development, however, is not a trivial undertaking and success is not guaranteed. A better understanding of how partners with different backgrounds interact and what types of instructional changes can be expected from initial attempts will facilitate this potentially powerful approach to instructional change. In this project, 2 engineers and 2 science educators worked jointly to develop a design‐based core engineering course to meet the needs and interests of future engineers and science educators. Interaction among planners and development progress were documented by written meeting records and reflections, emails, and records of planning stages and products. Analysis characterized interactions between engineers and educators and the resulting instructional changes. In spite of a strong interest in partners' topics and mutual goals, specialized language and professional cultural differences presented obstacles to understanding and development progress. Also described are the types of instructional changes reasonable to expect in initial development efforts.

Teachers need high quality materials to support their work with students and promote teacher learning from classrooms beyond what would normally be the case. Such teacher educative materials would be designed to explicitly enhance teacher thinking in relationship to students and science in classroom contexts. Designing materials specifically for teacher learning, however, is an intriguing yet largely untested idea. In this study, one 7th grade teacher used five inquiry science units with varying amounts and types of educative features over a two year period. Written pre and post lesson teacher reflections, informal interviews, and daily classroom videotape were collected. Analysis focused on aspects of inquiry teaching that are challenging for teachers to learn and illustrate pedagogical content knowledge. Comparisons overtime and between lessons with different types and amounts of educative support in the materials were made. Analysis identified characteristics of materials that guide teacher thinking and support inquiry science teaching.

To promote large-scale science education reform, developers must create innovations that teachers can use to learn and enact new practices. As part of an urban systemic reform effort, science materials were designed to reflect desired reforms and to support teacher thinking by addressing necessary content, pedagogy, and pedagogical content knowledge for teachers. The goal of this research was to describe teachers' enactments in comparison to reform as instantiated in the materials. Four middle school teachers' initial enactment of an inquiry-based science unit on force and motion were analyzed. Findings indicate two teachers' enactments were consistent with intentions and two teachers' enactments were not. However, enactment ratings for the first two were less reflective of curriculum intent when challenges were greatest, such as when teachers attempted to present challenging science ideas, respond to students' ideas, structure investigations, guide small-group discussions, or make adaptations. Overall, findings suggest that purposefully using materials with detailed lesson descriptions and specific, consistent supports for teacher thinking can help teachers with enactment. However, materials alone are not sufficient; reform efforts must include professional development and efforts to create systemic change in context and policy to support teacher learning and classroom enactment. (C) 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

For research on teaching to succeed in providing meaningful information, a method to examine teaching in complex classroom settings that is also feasible on a larger scale is needed. Our goal was to design a systematic method for observing classroom teaching that was consistent with reform recommendations and adaptable to large scale use. Our work is embedded in an ongoing urban systemic initiative of a large public school district to reform science and mathematics education. Middle school teachers' enactments of a reform-based science unit were videotaped. Student achievement measures included low, medium, and high cognitive level items developed to match science concepts addressed the unit. Analysis identified specific criteria within seven main analysis categories consistent with reform oriented instructional practices were associated with students' achievement scores. Ideas for adapting this framework to large scale use are discussed.

(2002). Supporting Science Teacher Learning: The Role of Educative Curriculum Materials. Journal of Science Teacher Education: Vol. 13, No. 3, pp. 221-245.

Reform efforts in science education emphasize the importance of supporting students' construction of knowledge through inquiry. Project-based science (PBS) is an ambitious approach to science instruction that addresses concerns of reformers. A sample of 142 10th- and 11th-grade students enrolled in a PBS program completed the 12th-grade 1996 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) science test. Compared with subgroups identified by NAEP that most closely matched our student sample, White and middle class, PBS students outscored the national sample on 44% of NAEP test items. This study shows that students participating in a PBS curriculum were prepared for this type of testing. Educators should be encouraged to use inquiry-based approachcs such as PBS to implement reform in their schools. (C) 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.