Search

AbstractTeachers’ knowledge seems to be important for student learning, however, it is a complex issue. Therefore recent studies have emphasized the importance of examining how teachers use their knowledge in teaching situations. Previous research has found that Geography preservice teachers responded to a text vignette, an instrument that simulates a teaching situation, predominantly with pedagogical thoughts, followed by pedagogical content thoughts but rarely with exclusively content thoughts. This study sheds light on such findings by examining preservice teachers’ content knowledge and professional role identity. Preservice teachers participated in a content knowledge test on the tropical rainforest topic and assessed their professional role identity on a well-established percent point index. The results from the previous study were then correlated with the declarative knowledge test and the professional role identity in this study. The findings indicated that preservice teachers possess limited content knowledge; however, they did not express it to the same extent when working on the vignette. Furthermore, the study revealed moderate correlations between the preservice teachers’ professional role identity and their responses to the vignette, evidence of the significant influence of professional role identity on teaching. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Academic language in geography education has attracted attention due to the increasing linguistic heterogeneity in most classrooms. Considering that subject-specific language differs from the language students use in their everyday lives, language-aware geography education contributes to addressing subject-specific language demands. However, there seems to be little empirical research and no systematic overview available concerning this topic. Thus, the aim of this study is to systematically review publications that empirically researched language in geography education to provide a synthesized state of knowledge for future research in this field. In accordance with the PRISMA guidelines, a final selection of 38 studies from three literature databases–Web of Science, ProQuest, and Scopus–were analyzed in this study. The empirical studies were categorized with reference to their subject-specific themes, concepts of space, and working methods, as well as the examined language. The main findings showed that the studies primarily examined language at the text/discourse level and in the written language mode. Particularly, the studies predominately investigated reading skills. Furthermore, physical geographical themes were at the center of the set of publications. This systematic review has both theoretical and practical implications for future research on the role of language in geography education research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In initial teacher education (ITE), preservice teachers acquire declarative knowledge in different knowledge domains: general pedagogy, content, and pedagogical content. To investigate how they use this knowledge in a school-related situation, n = 56 preservice teachers were asked to evaluate a peer's fictitious lesson plan. Their comments were subjected to content analysis and frequency analysis, which identified three distinct clusters reflecting different thought patterns. Participants referred predominantly to pedagogical knowledge, as well as some pedagogical content knowledge; exclusively content-focused comments were rare. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In supporting their students' learning in the classroom, noticing is an important professional skill for teachers, encompassing perceiving and interpreting relevant incidents, as well as ad hoc decision-making. While noticing is an established research topic in other domains, it remains largely neglected in relation to the geography teacher. The paper compares the noticing skills of geography teachers at three different stages of their professional development. Qualitative content analysis of teachers' think-aloud responses to video vignettes of geography teaching revealed that the three groups differed in terms of number of incidents perceived, interpretive stance, and decision-making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Teachers are confronted with multiple stimuli during instruction. To teach responsively, they must be able to identify and address classroom incidents that are critical for student learning. In the literature, the term "noticing" is used to refer to teachers' perception and interpretation of such incidents, as well as the associated decision-making. This qualitative study explores geography teachers' ability to notice pertinent stimuli. For this purpose, two staged video vignettes of subject-specific critical incidents were constructed. Expert geography teachers watched the vignettes, stopping them to comment whenever they noticed something critical. The findings indicate that a majority of teachers perceived the incidents in the manner intended by the authors. Analysis of the teachers' comments revealed four types of interpretation. While the participants did not always make a decision about how to respond to an incident, the analysis also identified two types of decision-making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Earth Science and Geography teacher preparation has developed to some degree along different lines, despite sharing many of the same issues, especially with regard to challenges in teacher education. The conference "International Perspectives on Geography and Earth Science Teacher Education 2016" wanted to bring together educators from both sciences from around the world together to move the debate about these challenges forward. From the research presentations and the discussion during and after the conference, several issues emerged: (1) the importance of the two subjects not losing sight of each other; (2) the need to overcome language barriers; (3) the question of standards/objectives for geography teacher education (e.g. with regard to teachers' (P)CK); (4) media used in teacher education (including ways to improve them); (5) ways to improve learners' geography and earth science content knowledge; and (6) strategies to increase teachers' professionalism. We already suggest some specific steps teacher educators in the two fields can take to improve teacher education. Yet, it also became clear that more research and strengthening international collaborations are needed, as well as better communication of the results of these efforts to practitioners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]