| This dissertation reports on a study that investigated six middle-school mathematics, science, and computer teachers' use and development of subject matter and pedagogical content knowledge as they taught an engineering unit focused on the engineering design process to create an assistive device. The principal investigator interviewed the teachers before, during, and after the engineering unit, presented the teachers with hands-on, think-aloud tasks, videotaped selected classroom observations, and evaluated their students' final projects. These data were used to identify and compare the mathematics, science, and engineering subject matter knowledge the teachers drew upon as they taught the engineering unit. One key finding revealed from these data was that the teachers with more years of teaching experience made more connections to mathematics and science concepts during the engineering unit than the teachers with fewer years of teaching experience. The analysis of the data also revealed key findings regarding the teachers' engineering pedagogical content knowledge. The teachers with more years of teaching experience employed a more student-centered instructional approach, while the teachers with fewer years of teaching experience employed a more teacher-centered teaching approach. The teachers with more years of teaching experience also spent more time engaging their students in discussion during the building portion of lessons than did the other teachers. The science teachers also demonstrated stronger explanations of the engineering design process than did the other teachers. |
