Fostering Literacy Practices in Secondary Science and Mathematics Courses: Pre-service Teachers’ Pedagogical Content Knowledge

Abstract

A significant number of high school students struggle to read textbooks and other course materials and to write successfully in content area courses such as mathematics and science (Kane, 2011). This paper investigates how pre-service teacher education can provide a strong literacy foundation for content area teachers. A pilot study, undertaken as part of an ongoing longitudinal study, examines how secondary pre-service teachers plan to infuse their teaching of secondary mathematics and science with literacy practices. This paper inquires into the perspectives of six mathematics and science pre-service teachers who were interviewed after completing a course in content area literacy. Pre-service teachers emphasized their growing awareness of how literacy strategies can enhance student learning in their specific subject areas.

Keywords

• new literacies
• mathematics literacy
• scientific literacy
• pre-service teacher education