Examining the educative nature of selected physical sciences textbooks about electrostatics using pedagogical content knowledge

ABSTRACT

Curriculum statements are crucial documents for guiding teaching and learning as they describe the content and skills to be acquired by learners. Textbooks translate curriculum statements into materials for use in schools. This study examines the educative nature of three physical sciences textbooks about electrostatics using the lens of pedagogical content knowledge (PCK). PCK describes the transformation of content into teachable forms and its evidence in textbooks would contribute to the teachability of the content in question. The study analyses textbooks as a source of information that can help teachers transform concepts of electrostatics into teachable forms. The study also proposes a possible model that describes the role of textbooks on teachers' knowledge and practice, as they are not considered in current PCK theories. The framework includes components of PCK described in the grand rubric and the support provided by curricular materials to teachers. The components of PCK are curricular saliency, learners' understanding of concepts, representations, and conceptual teaching strategies. The analysis revealed that curricular saliency was the most predominant component displayed in the textbooks compared to the other components. It is therefore recommended that textbooks should consciously include other PCK components, i.e., representations and strategies that address learners' difficulties.

KEYWORDS:

• Educative curriculum materials
• textbook analysis
• pedagogical content knowledge
• electrostatics

Disclosure statement

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

Ethical statement

Ethical clearance was not sought because the study did not involve human subjects. However, permission to analyse textbooks was sought from the publishers.

Notes

1 The selected textbooks were published in 2012. This is the same year the curriculum and assessment policy statement (CAPS) was implemented in South African schools starting at grade 10 in the further education and training phase. In 2013, the curriculum was then implemented in grade 11, which is the first year that the textbooks were used for teaching and learning.