An Investigative Study Of High School English Teachers’ Technological Pedagogical And Content Knowledge

In the modern information society,the framework of Technological Pedagogical and Content Knowledge(TPACK)which integrates technological knowledge,content knowledge and pedagogy knowledge provides important theoretical guidance and practical basis to guide teachers’ professional development in the modernized information society.Based on Shulman’s Pedagogical Content Knowledge(PCK),American scholars Mishra and Koehler put forward the framework of TPACK.Extensive attention from abroad and home has been attracted since the presence of TPACK,however there are little research on high school English teacher’s TPACK.The high school stage is a transitional stage of compulsory and higher education,so high school English teachers are required to have a good command of TPACK to improve the teaching quality.Based on Schmidt’s scale,a questionnaire has been formed to do a survey about high school English teachers’ TPACK of Shijiazhuang.Here are the two research questions:(1)what is the TPACK level of high school English teachers?(2)what do the roles of high school English teachers’ demographic characteristics like gender,teaching experience,educational background and technological background play in their perceptions of TPACK?Based on the TPACK scale compiled by Schmidt in 2005,a questionnaire was prepared,and 322 high school English teachers were surveyed.Finally,24 teachers were selected for interviews.The results were drawn from the data collected from the questionnaire and the interview:(1)high school English teachers have a moderate level of TPACK and they recognize the importance of technology but have less confidence in TK component;(2)there exists significant difference in teaching experience and technological background,and no significant difference in gender and education background.Based on the research conclusions and possible reasons,some suggestions for English teachers and English teacher management departments are provided like,English teachers should participate in relevant educational technology training programs,form a “help-pair”with other teachers,different kinds of training program,establish a teacher incentive mechanism,and encourage teachers to apply diverse and appropriate educational techniquesin teaching.Lastly,the limitations of the study is discussed and suggestions for further research are also provided.