For several decades educational researchers have focused on defining the precise character of disciplinary knowledge that enables mathematics teachers to effectively support students’ conceptual learning. These efforts have been predominantly inspired by Shulman’s (1986, 1987) notion of pedagogical content knowledge (PCK). Since Shulman's introduction of PCK to the educational research literature, mathematics educators have conducted numerous empirical studies and engaged in several theoretical analyses to elaborate/refine the PCK construct. This work has contributed to a divergence of theoretical frameworks for the nature and/or development of both PCK and the broader construct of mathematical knowledge for/in teaching (MKT). The theoretical frameworks for PCK/MKT resulting from this scholarship reflect diverse epistemological orientations, sociocultural considerations, and methodological approaches.

Teacher education programs and in-service professional development initiatives are the primary contexts for which research on the nature and development of mathematics teachers' pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) and/or mathematical knowledge for/in teaching (MKT) have practical implications. Yet the divergence, fragmentation, and even conflict among various theoretical frameworks for PCK/MKT presented in the mathematics education literature obscures mathematics teacher educators' actionable implementation of the various curriculum design principles, professional development practices, and pre-service practicum experiences recommended by this uncoordinated body of PCK/MKT scholarship. In response to this problem, the primary goal of the proposed Research Topic for Frontiers in Education is for prominent researchers who study mathematics teachers' disciplinary and pedagogical knowledge to describe and address the foundational sources of discrepancy–and often incompatibility–of the many characterizations of pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) and mathematical knowledge for teaching (MKT) presented in the mathematics education research literature. These sources include but are not limited to divergent epistemological orientations, theoretical assumptions, sociocultural considerations, and methodological approaches.

In alignment with the Research Topic and in service of the central goal of the collection of articles, the guest editors invite contributions that address any one of the following foci:

1. Epistemological foundations of characterizations and/or developmental frameworks for PCK/MKT;

2. Issues concerning the enactment of mathematics teachers' PCK/MKT in the context of lesson design and/or implementation;

3. Topics associated with the relation between mathematics teachers' disciplinary knowledge and the affective domain;

4. Methodological approaches to studying the nature and/or development of PCK/MKT.

Manuscripts that appropriately address any one of the aforementioned foci could take the form of empirical research reports, methodological papers, theoretical reports, meta-analyses, or literature reviews.

Submit your idea

Impact

Frontiers in Education

Submit your idea

Impact