Abstract:

The purpose of this study is to examine the STEM pedagogical content knowledge of primary school and science teacher candidates based on their department, gender, grade level and reading and research status of STEM-related resources. This quantitative research was carried out using the scanning model. The sampling of the research includes 148 undergraduate students attending either Primary School or Science Teaching Departments of a state university in the Aegean Region during the academic year of 2020-2021. All data were collected with the STEM Pedagogical Content Knowledge Scale (STEMPCK). Obtained data were analyzed with Mann Whitney U test and Kruskal-Wallis H test. As a result, prospective teachers were found to possess a high level of STEM Pedagogical Content Knowledge when compared to the overall scale. When the prospective teachers were compared in terms of the departments where they studied STEM pedagogical knowledge, it was determined that those studying in the science teaching department had a higher level of STEM pedagogical content knowledge than those studying in the classroom teaching department. In terms of gender variables, it was seen that females have more STEM pedagogical content knowledge than males. In terms of the class variable, it was seen that the third grade students had a higher level of STEM pedagogical content knowledge than the fourth grade students. Upon closer examination in the context of reading and researching STEM-related sources, it becomes evident that individuals who regularly engage with STEM materials possess a significantly higher level of STEM pedagogical content knowledge compared to those who infrequently read or never engage with such materials.

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