TPACK – time to reboot?

Abstract

In this paper we explore and challenge the trajectory of research scholarship in the area of Technological, Pedagogical and Content Knowledge (TPACK). In doing so we adopt the position, as elaborated in Harris et al.’s (2017) editorial, that TPACK research is in need of addressing two key questions: What do teachers need to know in order to integrate technology effectively in the classroom and how can they best develop that knowledge? In order to explore this concern we undertook a review of research using the TPACK framework published in the Australasian Journal of Educational Technology over the last five years. The resulting 22 papers in which the TPACK framework was used substantially as a theoretical or methodological base for the research was analysed in regards to how TPACK scholarship is developing in relation to the research directions set out in the Harris et al.’s (2017) special edition editorial. The review concludes that much of the research identified focused on exploring, critiquing and validating the structure of the TPACK diagram and the seven components it describes. However, we argue that this focus has distracted researchers from addressing the key goals of TPACK and advancing understanding of effective teaching with technology. We conclude that there is a need for a fundamental shift in the trajectory of TPACK research, that is, to pay greater attention to understanding the knowledge that teachers need to use technology effectively for teaching and learning.