Pedagogical knowledge (PK) is teachers’ deep knowledge about the processes and
practices or methods of teaching and learning. They encompass, among other things,
overall educational purposes, values, and aims. This generic form of knowledge applies to
understanding how students learn, general classroom management skills, lesson
planning, and student assessment. It includes knowledge about techniques or methods
used in the classroom; the nature of the target audience; and strategies for evaluating
student understanding. A teacher with deep pedagogical knowledge understands how
students construct knowledge and acquire skills and how they develop habits of mind and
positive dispositions toward learning. As such, pedagogical knowledge requires an
understanding of cognitive, social, and developmental theories of learning and how they
apply to students in the classroom.
