Understanding the Influence of Professional Development on History Teachers’ Pedagogical Content Knowledge

• In Event: Roundtable Session 24
  In Roundtable Session: Impact of Professional Development and Instructional Design on Teacher and Student Learning

Abstract

Utilizing the notions of pedagogical content knowledge and ambitious teaching, this study aims to describe secondary history teachers’ classroom practices, while participating in a U.S. Department of Education Teaching American History grant. Through mixed methodologies—survey and four case studies of teachers actively engaged in the professional development, this study explores what influenced teachers’ efforts to integrate what they learned into their classrooms. The findings demonstrate that teachers with higher levels of participation also reported higher levels of teaching practices that emphasized historical thinking skills. The case studies demonstrate variability in the extent to which teachers at the higher levels of participation integrated what they learned. In general, teachers seemed to place more emphasis on historical skills than historical content.

Authors

• Leanne Kallemeyn, Loyola University Chicago

• Daniela Marie Schiazza, Loyola University Chicago

• Ann Marie Ryan, Loyola University Chicago

• Crystal Johnson, Chicago Metro History Education Center

• Julie Peters, University of Illinois at Chicago