Using lesson study to support knowledge development in initial teacher education: Insights from early number classrooms

Abstract

This paper describes Lesson Study research with 25 pre-service primary teachers. We focus on pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) development as participants design, teach and reflect upon early number lessons. Engaging in Lesson Study promoted mathematics PCK development, notably in Knowledge of Content and Students (KCS) and Knowledge of Content and Teaching (KCT) subdomains. Reflecting on classroom teaching facilitated growth across both knowledge subdomains and resulted in highly integrated and robust pedagogical understandings that transferred beyond the study context. This development of early number PCK is outlined and the features of LS that make it effective in initial teacher education identified.