“What is TPACK?” is the question you may be asking
yourself if you’ve never heard of the acronym before and are unaware of what
each letter represents. What you most likely are aware of, however, is that in
today’s society technology devices such as iPads, tablets and even smart phones
are becoming frequently used during classroom instruction. “TPACK” stands for
Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge and is a framework that describes
the knowledge needed by teachers in order to effectively teach in a technology
enhanced environment. The TPACK framework consists of three primary forms of
knowledge: Content, Pedagogy and Technology.
Content
knowledge requires that teachers understand concepts, theories and ideas about
the subject matter to be taught. Pedagogical knowledge involves a teacher’s
overall educational purposes, values and goals. This form of knowledge applies
to understanding how students learn, how to manage a classroom, lesson
planning, and student assessment. Technology knowledge is related to certain
ways of thinking about and working with technology tools and resources. What
this form of knowledge also involves is being able to use technology well
enough to apply it effectively in everyday life and having the capacity to
recognize when the use of technology can aid or impede achieving a goal. Using
their knowledge, teachers should also be able to continually adapt to changes
in information technology.
TPACK
also emphasizes the importance of the new kinds of knowledge that intersect the
three primary forms of knowledge, representing four more knowledge bases:
Pedagogical Knowledge (PCK), Technological Content Knowledge (TCK), and
Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPCK) and Technological
Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK). TPACK is not considered a brand new idea
and it is not owned by anyone. A range of scholars argue that good teaching
requires an understanding of how technology relates to the pedagogy and
content.
