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Learning to teach: The development of teaching knowledge in trained and untrained physical education teachers
Abstract
The primary purpose of this study was to further the understanding of how people learn to teach. The central research question focused on differences in teaching knowledge that may be associated with training and experience. Eight teachers were selected to participate in this study. They represented a wide range of teaching experience, formal training, professional certification and sport participation. The common criterion for selection was previous experience in the teaching of volleyball. Data were collected from both questionnaires and transcribed interviews which followed the viewing of a twenty-minute videotaped volleyball lesson. Results indicated differences among the participating teachers in content knowledge (the skills of playing volleyball), pedagogical knowledge (general teaching principles), and pedagogical content knowledge (content-specific teaching knowledge). The comments of trained teachers displayed a greater awareness of and concern for general teaching principles. In contrast, untrained teachers devoted most of their comments to lesson content. Experienced teachers, whether trained or untrained, demonstrated a superior understanding of the relationship between the nature of content and the needs of learners at different levels of skill development. In that regard, they had a more elaborately developed sense of pedagogical content knowledge. Untrained teachers cited their experience as students and athletes as major sources of information about teaching, while trained teachers pointed to experiences associated with their formal training. Members from both group indicated that they had learned from role models and early teaching experiences. Among trained and untrained teachers the sources for the differences in knowledge, and how that knowledge was processed, included the following: varied teaching contexts such as public high schools and university classes, the extent of teaching experience which ranged from one to eighteen years, and views about teaching that were influenced by previous experience in either coaching or teaching roles. Implications for teacher education and staff development include a need for training experiences that will integrate various forms of teaching knowledge. In addition, it is clear that teacher preparation programs must deal much more explicitly with the differences between coaching and teaching contexts.
Subject Area
Teacher education|Physical education
Recommended Citation
Rosenberg, Daniel Z, "Learning to teach: The development of teaching knowledge in trained and untrained physical education teachers" (1990). Doctoral Dissertations Available from Proquest. AAI9110208.
https://scholarworks.umass.edu/dissertations/AAI9110208