Subject knowledge for science teaching at primary level: a comparison of pre-service teachers in England and Singapore

There is a growing body of evidence that a sound scientific knowledge base is important for teachers of primary science. This paper reports on a comparative study of aspects of the science knowledge of primary student teachers in Singapore and England. Student teachers' subject content knowledge was tested for three areas of science. Their pedagogic content knowledge was assessed for the same three areas in terms of lesson planning, responding to pupils' questions and the use of analogies to explain concepts. Similar levels of subject content knowledge and pedagogic ability were found in both groups. Although possession of a science qualification helped with some test items, in neither group was any clear connection found between science knowledge and the ability to teach that knowledge.