Background: Recent literature indicates that the trend towards investigating pre-service elementary teachers' conceptual understanding of science concepts they are expected to teach and their command of that content-specific conceptual understanding is gaining momentum in science education. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate…

Background: As prospective teachers traverse the early stages of their careers, their first experiences of teaching (both in-course and in-classroom), and the transitions between them, need to support the growth of their professional learning. In the context of STEM education, more needs to be understood about pre-service teachers' lived…

This study investigated the nature of the pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) development among 22 prospective teachers enrolled in an elementary science methods course. The nature of prospective teachers' PCK development was investigated in relation to their experiences in planning, enacting, and reflecting upon a Physical science lesson. The…

This study examined the impact of microteaching experiences of preservice elementary teachers enrolled in a science teaching methods course. The microteaching lessons targeted the physical science concepts represented in the Texas Educational Agency's exam for early childhood through sixth grade teacher certification. The results of this study…

Background: Literature contends that a teacher's knowledge of concept map-based tasks influence how their students perceive the task and execute the creation of acceptable concept maps. Teachers who are skilled concept mappers are able to (1) understand and apply the operational terms to construct a hierarchical/non-hierarchical concept map; (2)…

Background and purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate and identify the nature and the interrelatedness of pre-service teachers' misconceptions and scientific concepts for explaining dissolving before, during, and after a 5E learning cycle lesson on dissolving, the intervention. Sample, design, and methods: Guided by Vygotsky's…

This study explores five minority preservice teachers' conceptions of teaching science and identifies the sources of their strategies for helping students learn science. Perspectives from the literature on conceptions of teaching science and on the role constructs used to describe and distinguish minority preservice teachers from their mainstream…