The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of an instructional program designed to explicitly teach text structure awareness to fourth grade students to assist in their understanding of science content in a unit of study on weather. The changes that occurred in teacher thinking and practice were also examined throughout the process of developing and implementing the instructional program. A quantitative analysis was performed to reveal any differences in mean posttest scores between a control group and a treatment group. Results indicated that the treatment group students' science content knowledge was increased significantly more than the students in the control group. A qualitative analysis was also performed to reveal the changes that occurred while this program was implemented into science instruction. Results indicated that by using research and results to guide her instruction, the researcher became more refined as a teacher. Recommendations for further research are discussed.

This study was designed with two goals in mind. The first goal was to describe the formal and practical knowledge of intensive reading intervention teachers related to beginning reading instruction with at-risk first graders. A second goal was to understand any potential relationships between intensive reading teachers’ practical knowledge and formal knowledge. These two goals framed the study’s three research questions. To answer these three questions, the study was conducted in two phases. Phase one included 32 participants, all of whom worked in the role of a K-2 intensive reading intervention teacher. Each of these 32 participants completed a background questionnaire and a paper/pencil Teacher Knowledge Assessment (TKA). The TKA measured participants’ formal knowledge of beginning reading concepts. Participants’ scores on the TKA were then rank-ordered from lowest to highest to help guide the selection of phase two participants. Eight teachers in all participated in phase two of the study dedicated to the study of teachers’ practical knowledge of reading. Participants’ practical knowledge of reading was explored through three activities including a semi-structured interview, a concept-mapping activity and a videotaped reading lesson. Data analysis revealed several important findings. Intensive reading intervention teachers in this study’s sample differed in their formal knowledge of reading, measured by the TKA, and in their practical knowledge of reading, explored through interviews, concept-maps and reading lessons. The TKA revealed that study participants’ held more formal knowledge of concepts related to phonology and phonics and less formal knowledge of concepts related to morphology and syllable types. Related to practical knowledge, data analysis revealed that the teachers in this sample differed in their knowledge of beginning reading with subject-matter knowledge iv accounting for most of the differences. These gaps in subject-matter knowledge also impacted this sample of teachers’ use of instructional strategies and purposes of instruction. Data analysis also revealed insight into the relationships between this sample of teachers’ formal and practical reading knowledge. In this sample, intensive reading intervention teachers with more formal knowledge of reading concepts as measured on the TKA demonstrated more evidence of these concepts within their instruction provided to at-risk first grade readers. The participants in this sample who had less formal knowledge of beginning reading as measured by the TKA demonstrated less evidence of these concepts within their instruction provided to at-risk first grade readers. Participants with less formal knowledge did accurately calibrate their knowledge of the concepts tested on the TKA but did not equate the lower scores to their practical knowledge and overall teaching efficacy. The findings from this study added several important contributions to the literature on teacher knowledge and beginning reading instruction. First, the study was unique in its focus on intensive reading intervention teachers, thus contributing new findings related to a specialized group of teachers. Secondly, this study contributed descriptions of teachers’ practical knowledge with regards to beginning reading instruction. These descriptions are relatively absent in the current literature on teacher knowledge. Thirdly, the results from this study supported earlier findings in favor of a specialized body of subject-matter knowledge, especially related to beginning reading skills and concepts. Finally, the results contributed insight into the relationships between teachers’ formal reading knowledge and practical reading knowledge

This study reports the development of an instrument intended to measure mathematics teachers' knowledge of Cognitively Guided Instruction (CGI). CGI is a mathematics professional development framework based on how students think about and solve problems and how that knowledge guides instruction for developing mathematical understanding. The purpose of this study was to (a) analyze and revise the original CGI Teacher Knowledge Assessment (CGI TKA), (b) administer the revised CGI TKA, and (c) analyze the results from the revised CGI TKA. As part of the revision of the original CGI TKA, distractor analysis identified distractors that could be improved. Experts in CGI content were interviewed to identify ways in which the content of the CGI TKA could be improved, and some new items were created based on their feedback. Formatting changes were also made to administer the assessment electronically.After the original CGI TKA was revised, the revised CGI TKA was administered to teachers who had been trained in CGI. Two hundred thirteen examinees completed the revised CGI TKA and the results were analyzed. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses showed 21 of the items loaded adequately onto one factor, considered to be overall knowledge of CGI. The Rasch model was used to estimate item difficulty and person abilities as well as to compare models using dichotomous and partial credit scoring. Advantages and disadvantages of using partial credit scoring as compared to dichotomous scoring are discussed. Except under special circumstances, the dichotomous scoring produced better fitting models and more reliable scores than the partial credit scoring. The reliability of the scores was estimated using Raykov's rho coefficient. Overall, the revised CGI TKA appears to validly and reliably measure teachers' CGI knowledge.

The following essay has the purpose of giving an account of how the increasing digitalization, medialization and flow of information has affected social science as a subject, and how this has changed the expectations put on students and teachers. Furthermore, the way teachers’ TPACK knowledge and web literacy skills affect their teaching is also examined. Lastly, students’ level of understanding for the term media and information literacy is further investigated.  This is being done with the help of the following three question formulations: 1. What further demands does the increasing digitalization, medialization and flow of information pose for students and teachers, and how does it connect to social science as a subject? 2. How do teachers' knowledge of TPACK and web literacy affect their teaching? 3. What level of understanding do students have for the term media and information literacy?  The essay is based upon 15 peer-reviewed scientific articles, which have been chosen to represent the field of knowledge and answer the three question formulations. The interconnection between media and information literacy and democracy makes the subject increasingly important in today’s society with threats like propaganda, misinformation, and anti-democratic rhetoric. One conclusion made is how important it is for the students’ learning outcomes that the teacher is well-informed and has the necessary knowledge to help and support the students in their learning. It is also important to consider that the way students define media and information literacy may differ from teachers’ understanding, and that can lead to students’ knowledge being interpreted as higher than it is in reality.

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This study examines the effect of a technology-based instructional tool `Geniverse' on the content knowledge gains, Science Self-Efficacy, Technology Self-Efficacy, and Career Goal Aspirations among 283 high school learners. The study was conducted in four urban high schools, two of which have achieved Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) and two have not. Students in both types of schools were taught genetics either through Geniverse, a virtual learning environment or Dragon genetics, a paper-pencil activity embedded in traditional instructional method. Results indicated that students in all schools increased their knowledge of genetics using either type of instructional approach. Students who were taught using Geniverse demonstrated an advantage for genetics knowledge although the effect was small. These increases were more pronounced in the schools that had been meeting the AYP goal. The other significant effect for Geniverse was that students in the technology-enhanced classrooms increased in science Self-Efficacy while students in the non-technology enhanced classrooms decreased. In addition, students from Non-AYP schools showed an improvement in Science and Technology Self-Efficacy; however the effects were small. The implications of these results for the future use of technology-enriched classrooms were discussed. / CITE/Mathematics and Science Education

Det saknas, i stor utsträckning, forskning om läromedlens roll i grammatikundervisningen på lågstadiet i svenska skolor. Samtidigt framkommer grammatikens betydelse, om än inte explicit, i kursplanen för ämnet svenska och mycket tyder samtidigt på att läromedlen spelar en central roll för planeringen och genomförandet av undervisningen. Den här studien syftar till att bidra till en ökad förståelse för läromedlens funktion i grammatikundervisningen på lågstadiet samt hur lärare beskriver användningen av och uppfattningen om de läromedel de använder. Studiens teoretiska ramverk grundar sig i det sociokulturella lärandeperspektivet som kompletteras med Shulmans didaktiska pedagogical content knowledge. Genom fyra kvalitativa intervjuer med verksamma lågstadielärare samt utdrag av de läromedel de använder, framkommer efter en tematisk analys, uppfattningen om läromedel som ett stöd men även en begränsning för grammatikundervisningen. Ett stöd så till vida att det bidrar till ökad trygghet för lärarna, men en begränsning utifrån dess utformning och avsaknad av flexibilitet. Vidare utkristalliseras en bild av grammatiken som ett begrepp vilket lärare, samt läromedlen, använder med stor försiktighet. Med anknytning i tidigare forskning samt det teoretiska ramverk som studien hänvisar till förs en diskussion kring läromedlens roll i grammatikundervisningen idag, samt dess roll i framtiden. / There is, to a large extent, a lack of research regarding the role of teaching materials as a resource in grammar teaching at a primary level in L1 education in Sweden. At the same time, the importance of grammar education appears, if not explicitly, in the curriculum for the Swedish subject. Much indicates that teaching materials play a large role in the planning and implementing of the teaching. This study aims to contribute an increased understanding of how teaching materials are used in grammar teaching in primary education, and how teachers describe the use of and the perceptions they have regarding the teaching materials they use. The theoretical framework for this study is based on the sociocultural learning theory, which is supplemented by Shulman's didactic pedagogical content knowledge. The data was collected through four qualitative interviews with practicing primary school teachers, along with excerptions from the teaching materials they use. After analyzing the data through a thematic analysis, the perception of textbooks as both a support but also a limitation for grammar education was discerned. A support to the extent that it contributes to an increased security for the teachers, but a limitation based on its design and lack of flexibility. Moreover, a perception of grammar as a concept appears, which teachers as well as textbooks handle with caution. With regards to previous research and the theoretical framework this study relies on, a discussion is initiated where the role of  teaching materials in grammar education on a primary level today, and in the future is in focus.