Why is it important for teachers to have subject knowledge?

demonstrate deep knowledge and understanding of the subjects they teach’ (p 46). Your depth of subject knowledge therefore has a clear impact on the quality of your teaching. The overall impact is a narrowing of the range of activities, analogies, models and illustrations that help develop pupil understanding.

How does lack of knowledge affect teaching?

Previous research has shown that a lack of physical resources, such as textbooks and flip charts, cannot explain these low levels of achievement. New study finds that when teachers lack knowledge, their students fall behind. For example, teacher knowledge is particularly important in more developed African countries.

Why is it important for teachers to remain current in professional knowledge?

Teachers Develop Better Organization and Planning Skills Professional development training can help teachers to become better at planning their time and staying organized. This ultimately makes teachers more efficient and gives them extra time to focus on students rather than the paperwork.

Why is knowledge of subject important?

Put simply, without good knowledge of what you are teaching, it is impossible to meet these standards in a meaningful way. For example, one has to know what good progress looks like in a subject area and what is being assessed to promote good outcomes and make productive use of assessment.

What knowledge should a teacher have?

Elementary school teachers must have content mastery in basic math, literacy, social studies and science. High school teachers, who usually specialize in only one or two subject areas, must have a thorough knowledge and understanding of their area of specialty. Teachers also need to know how children learn.

How can teachers develop their subject knowledge?

Join a subject association or subject-specific websites and talk to other teachers who are experts in particular areas: NCETM – Maths. STEM Learning – Science, Technology, Engineering, Maths.

What is subject matter knowledge in teaching?

For us, we see subject matter knowledge as knowledge in the discipline taught by a teacher. It often includes an understanding about how the discipline advances, along with what is known within the discipline. These areas are certainly intertwined because as inquiries are made, there is an advancement of knowledge.

Why should teachers grow professionally while in service?

When Professional Development is done properly and meets the needs of the teachers then they become self motivated and will constantly upgrade themselves professionally and these actions are sure to result in students’ increased achievements.

What is the importance of content knowledge?

Our own content knowledge affects how we interpret the content goals we are expected to reach with our students. It affects the way we hear and respond to our students and their questions. It affects our ability to explain clearly and to ask good questions.

What is subject knowledge for teaching?

Subject knowledge is the actual knowledge teachers are expected to teach, for example you may need to have a thorough understanding of a Shakespeare play in order to be able to teach it. ‘Subject pedagogy’ is understanding how the topic can be taught.

Do teachers need to understand the subjects they teach?

While teacher content knowledge is crucially important to the improvement of teaching and learning, attention to its development and study has been uneven. Historically, researchers have focused on many aspects of teaching, but more often than not scant attention has been given to how teachers need to understand the subjects they teach.

Do teachers need subject knowledge or pedagogical knowledge?

Although this is neither subject knowledge nor pedagogical knowledge it does support teachers to make better choices about what they teach, when, and in what order, and what strategies and techniques they use to do so. I would argue strongly that what we teach (the subject content) is too often overshadowed by how we teach (pedagogy).

Does teacher subject-matter knowledge matter?

According to Hattie, teacher subject-matter knowledge had an effect size of 0.19, meaning that it was far less effective than other factors like classroom management (0.52) or effective teacher feedback (0.75). Get the best of Edutopia in your inbox each week.

Is teacher subject knowledge just a truism?

Instead, it seems as if it has been accepted as a truism by many educators, and not investigated further – it is just a ‘given’. What evidence there is, however, suggests that there is much less correlation between teacher subject knowledge and student achievement than one might reasonably expect.