TikTok Peer Pedagogies for Teacher Professional Development in Elementary Science Instruction

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Saturday 3:20 pm Four Seasons Ballroom 2-3
  In Roundtable Session: Community Connection Across Digital Social Spaces (Table 1)

Abstract

This digital ethnographic study explores how pedagogical learning happens between elementary teachers in #ScienceTok. Framed through peer pedagogies, researcher-only accounts were created on TikTok, and the top 25 videos featuring elementary science were identified and coded for their purpose. The comments and audience interactions were analyzed using discourse analysis in order to identify how users were interacting with the videos. Findings indicate that peer pedagogies were present, demonstrating that learning is taking place across video creation and the comments. This study contributes to the emerging body of literature on the ways social media is used as professional development for teachers, particularly how #ScienceTok is a positive learning space; which is significant given the current shifts in teacher education at large.

Authors

• Sarah E. Jerasa, Clemson University

• Laura Shelton, University of Houston