Subject specific demands of teaching: Implications for out-of-field teachers

This chapter provides a framework for thinking about the subject-specific nature of teaching in terms of the knowledge, modes of inquiry and discursive practices that delineate one subject from another in the traditional school curriculum. The chapter will explore how these disciplinary traits are translated into teaching as curriculum, knowledge and pedagogy, and how this subject-specificity of teaching is juxtaposed against the more generic aspects of teaching. The chapter explores the idea that if a teacher’s expertise can be situated within a field, then they can also be positioned out-of-field. Implications for teaching out-of-field are discussed in terms of the subject-specific knowledge, processes and skills, and the difficulties associated with teacher practice. English and Australian illustrations of teacher practices from in-field and out-of-field situations are provided, in particular highlighting the demands of moving across subject boundaries. Cross-fertilisation is especially evident when subjects are integrated, therefore, the issues associated with integrated curriculum are discussed where the traditional subject boundaries are being challenged as schools are reorganised to integrate subjects through, for example, STEM teaching, or holistic curriculum designs

Effectiveness of student response systems in terms of learning environment, attitudes and achievement

In order to investigate the effectiveness of using Student Response Systems (SRS) among grade 7 and 8 science students in New York, the How Do You Feel About This Class? (HDYFATC) questionnaire was administered to 1097 students (532 students did use SRS and 565 students who did not use SRS). Data analyses attested to the sound factorial validity and internal consistency reliability of the HDYFATC, as well as its ability to differentiate between the perceptions of students in different classrooms. Very large differences between users and non-users of SRS, ranging from 1.17 to 2.45 standard deviations for various learning environment scales, attitudes and achievement, supported the efficacy of using SRS

Collaborative innovations with rural and regional secondary teachers: enhancing student learning in mathematics

When questioned, secondary mathematics teachers in rural and regional schools in Australia refer to their limited opportunities to engage and share experiences with peers in other schools as an under-utilised and cost-effective mechanism to support their professional learning and enhance their students' learning. The paper reports on the creation and evaluation of a network of learning communities of rural secondary mathematics teachers around a common purpose - enhancement and increased engagement of student learning in mathematics. To achieve this goal, teams of teachers from six rural schools identified an issue hindering improved student learning of mathematics in their school. Working collaboratively with support from university personnel with expertise in curriculum, assessment and quality pedagogy, teachers developed and implemented strategies to address an identified issue in ways that were relevant to their teaching contexts. The research study identifies issues in mathematics of major concern to rural teachers of mathematics, the successes and challenges the teachers faced in working in learning communities on the issue they identified, and the efficacy of the professional learning model