Learning Community and Pedagogical Content Knowledge in Chemistry: a study from the Refined Consensus Model
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.4151/07189729-Vol.65-Iss.2-Art.1915Keywords:
Professional development Reflective Practice In-Service Teacher Education Teaching Chemistry Learning CommunitiesAbstract
Pedagogical content knowledge in Chemistry within an academic learning community poses a challenge in research related to transforming knowledge to make it teachable. This study analyzed the pedagogical content knowledge of the Chemistry Teaching Methodology Group, using the Refined Consensus Model. The research employed a qualitative approach, utilizing action research and case studies with the participation of three teachers. Data collection involved field notes, narratives, and interviews based on content representation, following a classroom intervention during the COVID-19 pandemic. The unit of analysis was based on the Complexity Hypothesis, and the data were processed using MAXQDA 24 software. The findings revealed strengths, particularly in the contextual, disciplinary, and psychopedagogical components, which are consistently reflected in curricular decisions, teaching strategies, and the selection of activities for teaching aqueous systems.
The evidence shows a shared emphasis on contextualizing scientific content and connecting chemical concepts to situations relevant to students' lives. This trend was observed in lesson plans, classroom narratives, and observations, where teachers prioritized the use of chemical language, molecular representations, and the relationships between the macroscopic, submicroscopic, and symbolic levels.
Likewise, the collaborative work of the MEQ Group was identified as having a significant influence on consolidating collective pedagogical content knowledge. Participants share conceptual and pedagogical frameworks that guide pedagogical practices and strengthen flexible, contextualized, and diversified curriculum design processes. This was evident in collective discussions on intervention proposals and in decision-making related to adapting teaching materials during the pandemic.
However, the metadisciplinary component is still being consolidated. Teachers acknowledged the importance of incorporating reflections on the history and epistemology of science, but evidence shows that these still appear in an incipient and unsystematic way in classroom practices. In this sense, the narratives and interviews suggest strengthening collective spaces for reflection on the nature of science, argumentation, and the identification of epistemological obstacles associated with the teaching and learning of chemistry.
The results demonstrate that the MEQ (Methodology for the Study of Chemistry) transcends the function of an academic collective and is configured as a learning community. The different sources analyzed allowed for the identification of dynamics of participation, collective validation, and shared construction of pedagogical knowledge.
The lesson plans, narratives, and interviews show that pedagogical decisions do not respond exclusively to individual initiatives but are the product of processes of deliberation and consensus among peers. This dynamic fosters reflection on practice and contributes to strengthening teachers' professional development, especially in aspects related to curriculum design, the contextualization of content, and the selection of teaching strategies.
A key aspect was the adaptation of the teaching units on aqueous systems during the remote learning period. Although the Group had previously designed materials, the instructors recognized limitations in their implementation in virtual environments due to the high experimental nature of the proposed activities. External resources were adapted, adjusting them to the characteristics of the participants' institutional contexts.
This process demonstrated the Group's capacity for curricular adaptation and its collaborative practices aimed at ensuring the relevance of the teaching proposals in changing educational scenarios.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Darlin Pulgarin, Bartolomé Vázquez Bernal, María Ángeles De Las Heras Pérez
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