Teacher Preparation in STEM+C Pedagogy

Overview

This project involves testing the PLT Framework in a teacher preparation course with pre-service teachers. Participants reviewed three PLTs using the Technology Menu, then identified which PLT they would most likely use in a hypothetical classroom and why. They also reflected on using the framework for their evaluations.

Research Questions

We wanted to understand (1) how the teachers reflect on the properties of PLTs, and (2) how the framework helps teachers make those reflections. We were guided by the following research questions:

1. What design considerations do pre-service teachers make when evaluating a PLT for classroom integration?
2. Does the PLT Framework help pre-service teachers in deciding which PLT to use in their classrooms?

Results Summary

The completed evaluations yielded several design considerations regarding 26 distinct properties of PLTs identified by the participants, showing the promise of the framework as an analytic tool. Participants reported that the framework guided their thinking in making considerations they otherwise would not have. This helped me to refine the PLT Framework for continued testing.

Publications

This study has been accepted for publication at the 2026 International Conference of the Learning Sciences (ICLS 2026) and will be presented in June 2026. Prior to this study, I tested an early version of the framework with in-service teachers and reported the results in a poster at the 2025 SIGCSE Technical Symposium.