Learning design, design contexts and pedagogical knowledge-in-pieces

This paper argues the case for conducting theoretically well-grounded empirical research into teachers’ design activities, including their design thinking, as a strategically important complement to practical development work in the field of learning design. We identify some issues arising from two related lines of empirical research in which we have been engaged – drawing attention to the importance of context in design cognition. We also introduce a conception of teachers’ personal pedagogical knowledge as ‘knowledge in pieces’, and examine some of the implications of this view for thinking about the relationships between pedagogical beliefs, design decisions and teaching practices.