Utilizing Bloom's taxonomy and authentic learning principles to promote preservice teachers' pedagogical content knowledge

Abstract

The global reading crisis has been widely reported. One of the reasons attributed to the reading crisis is teachers' inadequate pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) regarding the teaching of reading. In South Africa, a multilingual country, the reading dilemma and the need for improved PCK have been debated extensively. This study, therefore, explores how utilizing Bloom's taxonomy and authentic learning principles within teacher education can promote the development of PCK in teaching reading. Using an interpretivist paradigm and an exploratory qualitative research design, data were collected from 20 second-year preservice teachers. The data collection consisted of a qualitative open-ended reflection questionnaire and document reviews. Inductive and thematic analysis was used for data analysis. The findings highlight the importance of authentic learning and PCK in teacher education and training. Furthermore, the findings indicate how Bloom's taxonomy can serve as a possible metacognitive framework to promote preservice teachers' PCK development. The benefits and challenges of PCK within teacher education are also elaborated on. Recommendations are made for teacher education programs to explore the value of Bloom's taxonomy as a metacognitive learning framework instead of a hierarchical assessment framework to create authentic learning opportunities to better prepare preservice teachers for practice.