Entwicklung und Evaluation eines Fachpraktikums für das Lehramtsstudium Technik zur Förderung fachpraktischer Kompetenzen

High-quality teacher education is the basis for high competences of future teachers. To prepare them adequately for the demands of their future teaching profession, it is essential to know (i) which subject-specific competences and skills they need and (ii) how these can be acquired in teacher education. However, empirical findings on necessary competences as well as on the design of teacher training courses are scarcely available on the subject of technology, since mainly general, normative recommendations on potential study contents exist. To fill this gap, this work focuses on the investigation of necessary practical competences of prospective technology teachers. The acquisition of such practical competences and skills is of great importance for the school subject of technology when, for example, machines are operated, tools are used, or objects are designed and manufactured. However, there is a lack of a differentiated description of the practical requirements for technology teachers and the teaching-learning processes required for this in the teacher training. The aim of this work is therefore the theory- and empirically-guided development and evaluation of a practical demand-oriented course for the technology teacher training programme at RWTH Aachen University to promote subject-specific practical competences. The development was structured as an iterative process by the Model of Educational Reconstruction (MER), according to which three major aspects were investigated and connected. (1) In a first step, the competences to be acquired were described and structured, taking normative perspectives into account as well as an empirical needs assessment among teachers and teacher educators to clarify and analyse the science subject matter. (2) In a second step, the student teacher´s perspective was surveyed to adapt the course to their initial competences, skills and experiences. (3) In a third step, the content and the didactic structure of the practical course was developed iteratively, considering the findings of the preceding steps and various requirements for the design and the tasks of the practical course (e.g., a necessary differentiation or a self-directed examination of the practical tasks in the course). The practical course was taught in several runs and evaluated with respect to the perceived learning outcomes of the student teachers as well as to the quality of the course. The evaluation was carried out through self-assessment of the students in a questionnaire and a written portfolio. The findings of the evaluation indicate a positive perception regarding the quality of the course. The students positively assessed the course structure (e.g., sequence of the course contents) and individual course elements (e.g., concrete course tasks). Furthermore, an increase in practical competences and skills – regardless of initial experience – was found. The work provides groundwork for further studies, for example on the level of competence acquisition or the long-term effect of the practical course.