Locating Personal Pedagogical Content Knowledge of Science Teachers within Stories of Teaching Force and Motion

Abstract

A narrative inquiry approach was adapted to study teacher’s experiences of planning and teaching force and motion topics. Oral narrative data were collected through interview conversations between the researcher and the teachers about their experiences of planning and teaching force and motion concepts. Narrative analysis technique suggested by Polkinghorne, was employed to develop stories of teaching force and motion—that acceded access to their pPCK. and comprised of small entities of knowledge—pedagogical constructions, which are narrative fragments. Each pedagogical construction was placed on a four-level PCK continuum to assess the breadth and depth of each teacher’s pPCK. A mapping technique was devised to illustrate pPCK of each participant teacher, and a comparative analysis of these illustrations reveals fascinating similarities and differences apparently grounded in individual teacher’s subject area background and their specific teaching experiences. Implications for pre-service science teacher education are discussed.