The inter and intra-collective circulation of knowledge on experimental activities in professional development and the training of chemistry teacher trainers

Abstract

This study examined how the professional development and the training of Chemistry teacher trainers can contribute to learning on experimentation in Science/Chemistry teaching. It sought to analyse the discourse appropriation process of “experimentation in teaching" by Chemistry teacher trainers in specific subject areas and the proposals of Chemistry teachers on Chemistry licentiate teaching programs to outline the experimental activities, as appropriate content for early stage teacher-training. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with five teachers of specific subject disciplines and five of Chemistry teacher-training. The interpretation of the qualitative information was in the main founded on Ludwik Fleck’s epistemology, in particular in the exploration of the inter and intra-collective circulation category. The results corroborate the thesis that learning on experimental activities in Chemistry teaching can be mediated using inter and intra-collective circulation of learning on the subject at hand, and that such circulation occurs throughout a plurality of spaces and methodologies both in the professional development of Chemistry teacher trainers and in the early stage training of the future teachers of this science in basic education.