The development of physics subject knowledge by student science teachers

Inadequate supply of new secondary school physics teachers in England is a widely reported concern. One solution is the provision of Subject Knowledge Enhancement (SKE) courses intended to develop the physics subject knowledge of non-physics graduates so they can enter an Initial Teacher Education (ITE) course to become physics teachers. Although the effectiveness of SKE courses for developing students’ subject understanding has been researched, little attention has been given to examining students’ experiences of engaging with a subject they have perhaps not studied since A-level in school. My research explores the cases of 9 SKE course students in one English university to examine how their conceptualisations of physics subject knowledge for teaching evolve over time, and their perceptions of effective approaches for supporting its development. The aim is to develop insights that can be used to inform ITE practice and to form the starting point for a possible longer-term longitudinal study into these participants’ experiences as they progress in their teaching careers. In this article I share some of the early emergent themes from initial analysis of longitudinal data from one participant.