Corroborating Magnusson’s PCK Model for Teaching Genetics at The Ghanaian Senior High School Level

Abstract

Confirmatory factor analysis was conducted on survey data from 149 Senior High School biology teachers in Ghana to validate Magnusson's framework of pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) in science teaching. The questionnaire aligned with Magnusson's conceptualization of PCK, encompassing components like teaching orientations, knowledge of students' understanding, instructional strategies, assessment, and science curriculum within genetics. The results affirmed the integrative model of PCK, indicating strong interactions among its components. While the transformative model also showed relevance, its imposition led to a notable decrease in goodness of fit. This underscores the applicability of Magnusson's integrated PCK model for understanding Ghanaian SHS teachers' PCK in genetics instruction. The findings emphasize the importance of integrated training in knowledge domains like assessment, instruction, curriculum, and understanding to foster effective teaching.