Assessing Biology Teachers’ PCK for Teaching Genetics at the Senior High School Level in Ghana

Abstract

Genetics has been identified as a topic that Ghanaian students writing the Biology exam of the West African Senior School Certificate Examinations struggle with. A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 149 senior high school biology teachers sampled from three selected administrative regions in Ghana to investigate their Pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) for teaching genetics. PCK was assessed as comprising of knowledge of students’ understanding of science (KSU), of science curriculum (KSC), of assessment in science (KAS), of instructional strategies (KIS) and orientations to teaching science (OTTS), hypothesized by Magnusson et al. (1999). This model of PCK, the nature of its components, their interconnections and differences across different demographics of teachers was assessed using a 43-item multiple choice questionnaire. The five-component model of PCK was confirmed by Confirmatory Factor Analysis. Pearson’s correlation also revealed significant correlations among the five components of PCK, with KIS making the most connections followed by OTTS. This PCK of Ghanaian biology teachers, teacher-centred in its orientations and instructional strategies was the same regardless of the professional training or years of teaching experience. The findings of this research suggest the need for a shift from the traditional teacher-centred orientations and instructional strategies towards more student-centred, activity-based learning environments that are characteristic of inquiry-based reform teaching.