Understanding and explaining pedagogical problem solving: a video-based grounded theory study of classroom pedagogy

ABSTRACT

Background

during school lessons participants can face challenging pedagogical problems such as when science and religion topics interact. Potential types of pedagogical problem and what participants can do in response are unclear. Research designs exploring pedagogical problem solving should investigate teachers’ thinking processes and include pupil interpretations.

Purpose

This theoretical paper builds on the Pedagogy Analysis Framework by integrating it with pedagogical problem-solving theory, illustrating the resultant extended Pedagogy Analysis Framework and Pedagogical Problem Typology using data from a video-based study of one science and one Religious Education (RE) lesson. The research design also builds on previous work by exploring primary school and RE pedagogy.

Sample

One class of thirty 7-year-old pupils, and another class of 10-year-olds, each with their class teacher and teaching assistants.

Design and Method

Four research methods were used (lesson video analysis, teacher verbal protocols, pupil group verbal protocols and individual teacher interviews). Data were video recorded (managed using NVivo). Six hours of video data were analysed using grounded theory methods by two educational researchers, the class teacher and two groups of pupils (three girls and three boys). The interpretivist theoretical perspective (symbolic interactionism) was underpinned by a social constructionist epistemology (hence the methodology is Straussian grounded theory). Appropriate criteria for evaluating the emergent grounded theory were used. Data were recorded in 2019.

Results

This paper presents an extended Pedagogy Analysis Framework and a Pedagogical Problem Typology both illustrated with examples.

Conclusion

The Extended Pedagogy Analysis Framework and Pedagogical Problem Typology can help during pedagogy analysis to identify, understand and explain common and less common types of pedagogical problem. Novice-expert strategic dialogue can struggle for want of a shared vocabulary. This research design works with younger and older children.

KEYWORDS:

• Video-based
• pedagogy
• analysis
• grounded theory
• problem-solving

Acknowledgments

We thank [Removed4].

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

The data that support the findings of this study are available in [Removed5].

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Templeton World Charity Foundation [TWCF0375].