Strategies used by science student teachers for subject knowledge development: a focus on peer support

Abstract

The demand on science teachers in England and Wales in terms of their own subject knowledge has increased significantly since the 1980s. This has created pressure on pre‐service educators to adequately prepare pre‐service teachers regarding their science knowledge, during a very intensive course. This qualitative study explored the perceptions of students about the range of strategies they use to facilitate their subject knowledge development during a one‐year postgraduate initial teacher education course, with a particular focus on their use of peers. The majority of the pre‐service teachers used their peers in a range of different ways to develop their own knowledge and understanding of science. They valued this support highly and believed that with enhanced tutor facilitation, peers could be used to greater effect. These findings are discussed in terms of the demands of a highly regulated, standards‐driven model of teacher education and the desire to encourage the development in our students of a sense of professionalism characterised by both autonomy and collegiality.