The purpose of this study is to understand the practical knowledge of the elementary school teachers, based on the actual teaching situation. The qualitative research method is used in this study in order to show what the practical knowledge consists ...
The purpose of this study is to understand the practical knowledge of the elementary school teachers, based on the actual teaching situation. The qualitative research method is used in this study in order to show what the practical knowledge consists of, how it is used in the classroom, and where it comes from. Mr. Choi, homeroom teacher at Boram Elementary School in province B. This study was conducted from July 1998 to August 1999. Mr. Choi`s various practical knowledge revealed in his mathematics class was combined of the knowledge of subject-matter education and elementary education; Mr. Choi`s elementary subject-matter education was different from the one of middle education in that of integrating in methods in the level of teacher`s strategies and principles, and integrating in contents based on the teacher`s beliefs; Mr. Choi`s practical knowledge about teaching elementary school mathematics was applied to form a trajectory as a rough outline of the mathematics class before the each class, control the trajectory during class by understanding class dynamics, and reflect on overall class, which was especially important as his knowledge was refined further through this process; Among the various sources to have influenced to Mr. Choi`s practical knowledge, personal experience, especially religious conviction and study experience, and twenty eight years of teaching experience are the most important factors.