Centre for Science & Technology Education Research

Technology education teachers’ pedagogical content knowledge: a collaborative research study between New Zealand and South Africa

Directors:  John Williams and Mishack Gumbo (University of South Africa)

Project Dates:  2010 - 2011

Project

The purpose of this study is to research teachers’ pedagogical and content knowledge (PCK) with specific reference to technology education. This is a collaborative and comparative study between South Africa and New Zealand. It seeks to investigate the development of early secondary school teachers’ PCK in Technology Education. It is planned to take place between the two countries, New Zealand and South Africa with a view that the two countries can learn from each other regarding this development of PCK. What motivated it study is the curricular transformation and change that seems to characterize the two countries. New Zealand introduced and implemented Technology Education in 1997 (Jones & Moreland, 2004) and South Africa in 1998. Both have also had curricular reviews, the latest in New Zealand being in 2007 (Nicholas & Lockley, 2010), and South Africa in 2000 and 2009. According to Nicholas and Lockley (2010), curricular changes have implications on classroom practice and teachers’ concepts of what being a successful teacher in the learning area of technology means. There is an opportunity for the two countries will learn from each other about technology education teachers’ PCK.

Publications

Enquiries

For further information please contact:
John Williams, 07 838 4769