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Student Learning in German Higher Education pp 105–123Cite as

Development of Prospective Physics Teachers’ Professional Knowledge and Skills during a One-Semester School Internship

Abstract

In academic teacher education programs prospective physics teachers are supposed to acquire professional knowledge and skills that enable them to carry out effective instruction. However, it is unclear which knowledge has an impact on teaching quality and how knowledge and teaching skills develop throughout studies. In particular, this is the case for practical parts of teacher education programs like school internships or other forms of field experiences. Therefore, we examine the development of pre-service physics teachers‘professional knowledge over a one-semester internship in schools. Furthermore, we analyze the development of their skills in (a) planning physics lessons, (b) reflecting physics lessons, and (c) explaining physics over that internship using an innovative approach of standardized performance assessments. So far, our longitudinal analyses of a cohort of prospective physics teachers from four German universities hardly show any development of their professional knowledge and skills during the internship. Further analyses are needed to gain more insight into this low efficacy of the internship.

Keywords

  • Science education
  • pre-service teacher education
  • professional knowledge
  • teachers’ professional development
  • performance assessment
  • pre-post-measurement
  • field experience

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Universität Paderborn, Paderborn, Germany

    C. Vogelsang & P. Reinhold

  2. Universität Potsdam, Potsdam-Golm, Germany

    A. Borowski, D. Buschhüter & P. Enkrott

  3. Universität Bremen, Bremen, Germany

    C. Kugelmeyer, M. Kempin & H. Schecker

  4. Rheinisch-Westfälische Technische Hochschule Aachen, Aachen, Germany

    J. Riese & J. Schröder

Authors
  1. C. Vogelsang
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  2. A. Borowski
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  3. C. Kugelmeyer
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  4. J. Riese
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  5. D. Buschhüter
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  6. P. Enkrott
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  7. M. Kempin
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  8. P. Reinhold
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  9. H. Schecker
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  10. J. Schröder
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Correspondence to C. Vogelsang .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany

    Prof. Dr. Olga Zlatkin-Troitschanskaia

  2. Humboldt University of Berlin, Berlin, Germany

    Prof. Dr. Hans Anand Pant

  3. Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany

    Prof. Dr. Miriam Toepper

  4. Humboldt University of Berlin, Berlin, Germany

    Corinna Lautenbach

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Vogelsang, C. et al. (2020). Development of Prospective Physics Teachers’ Professional Knowledge and Skills during a One-Semester School Internship. In: Zlatkin-Troitschanskaia, O., Pant, H.A., Toepper, M., Lautenbach, C. (eds) Student Learning in German Higher Education. Springer VS, Wiesbaden. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-658-27886-1_6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-658-27886-1_6

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