Student Thinking in the Professional Development of College Biology Instructors: An Analysis through the Lens of Sociocultural Theory

This study employed a qualitative design using semistructured interviews, analyzed through qualitative thematic analysis. We investigated the ways that social interactions focused on artifacts of student learning facilitated college instructors' internalization of knowledge about teaching and learning. We found that participants valued the social space of the FLC for the camaraderie and diverse perspectives it facilitated and that participants internalized the discussions from their FLCs in the form of new insights into student thinking and plans for improving teaching. Our data support the idea that PD for college science teaching that includes social space focused on artifacts of student learning will lead to instructor learning. Further, our data point to the fruitfulness of new research to expand our knowledge of the implications of sociocultural theory for college science PD.PMID:35580006 | DOI:10.1187/cbe.21-01-0003
Source: CBE Life Sciences Education - Category: Cytology Authors: Source Type: research