Teacher self-perception as a pedagogical stem content expert and its influence on classroom practice

Abstract

Providing a positive atmosphere for growth in STEM can elevate female middle school students towards seeing themselves succeeding even through short-term failures and cognitive dissonance. Yet, through negative gendered discourses, females can be easily persuaded against the challenging curriculum of STEM and move down a path of least resistance. A teacher confident in their content and proficient in their pedagogy is one that can provide a role model showing students how to push forward even when things get complicated. This study aims to understand how female middle school teachers in a mid-western American city self-identify as pedagogical content experts in STEM and how their identities influence their practices in the classroom.

Grounded in the theoretical framework of poststructural feminism, this study works to uncover how teachers consistently navigate and transcend the gendered cultural norms that impact how they identify as pedagogical STEM content experts. The case study methodology was used to study the gendered discourses, with four cases representing one female middle school teacher. Upon completion of each case analysis, case and cross-case analyses were used to identify the tension and juxtaposition between cases.

Upon analysis, the most noteworthy takeaway from this study was the continued presence of gendered norms and contradictions towards self-identifying as an expert. Highlighting the teacher's gendered and socially displaced role, the terms expert and teacher continued to be viewed as opposing identities. Numerous times, each participant described expertise in both content and pedagogy but refused to self-identify as a pedagogical STEM content expert in the interviews, focus groups, or writings.