What is the Most Important Source for Teachers’ Knowledge Development? - A Meta-Analysis of 27 Empirical Studies on the Sources of Teachers’ Knowledge

Oct 15, 2026

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Studying the sources of teachers’ knowledge and the importance of different sources is crucial for advancing teachers’ knowledge development. This paper presents a systematic meta-analysis of 27 empirical studies on teachers’ knowledge sources conducted in China and abroad over roughly the past two decades. Findings indicate that in-service experience is more important than preservice education and primary/secondary education, with teacher experience and reflection, plus colleague exchanges, as key sources. For preservice stages, internships and practicums are most impactful, while other sources show no significant effect. The usefulness varies by knowledge category, subject, and education stage, and reflects individual differences. The results support enhancing practice, reflection, collaboration, and exchange, and improving preservice education. Future research is recommended to use focused knowledge frameworks, multiple data collection methods, random sampling, and inferential statistical analysis, and to investigate psychological and social-cultural mechanisms.

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What is the Most Important Source for Teachers’ Knowledge Development? A Meta-Analysis of 27 Empirical Studies on the Sources of Teachers’ Knowledge Dongchen Zhao, 1 Lianghuo Fan2 1. School of Educational Science, Harbin Normal University, Harbin 150025, Heilongjiang, China 2. School of Mathematical Sciences, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200241, China Abstract. Studying the sources of teachers ’ knowledge and the importance of different sources is of great significance to promote the development of teachers ’ knowledge. This paper systematically analyzes 27 empirical studies on the sources of teachers ’ knowledge in China and abroad in the past two decades or so in terms of methods and findings. The results show that the in-service experience of teachers contains more important sources than the preservice education and primary and secondary education. Teacher’s experience and reflection, and exchanges with colleagues are the most important sources of teachers ’knowledge development. Educational internships and practicums are the most important sources of teachers ’ knowledge during their preservice education, while other sources have no significant effect. The usefulness of teachers ’ knowledge sources is affected by variables such as knowledge category, subject, education stage and shows a certain degree of individual differences. The above results confirm the importance of teachers ’practice, reflection, collaboration and exchange and indicate the necessity of improving preservice education. In terms of methods, it merits recommendation for future researchers in this area to use single-category-focused and topic-focused knowledge frameworks, more specific knowledge source frameworks, multiple ways of data collection, random selection of research subjects, and inferential statistical analysis. In addition, further studies should also look into the psychological and social-cultural mechanisms of teachers ’ knowledge development as well as the sources of teachers ’ knowledge. Best Evidence in Chinese Education 2022; 10(2):1375-1393. | Doi: [10.15354/bece.22.ar036](10.15354/bece.22.ar036). | | --- | | How to Cite: Zhao, D., & Fan, L. (2022). What is the most important source for teachers ’ knowledge development? A meta-analysis of 27 empirical studies on the sources of teachers ’ knowledge. Best Evidence in Chinese Education, 10(2):1375- 1393. | Keywords: Teachers’ Knowledge, Source of Teacher’s Knowledge, Teachers’Professional Development, Teacher Education, Empirical Research, MetaAnalysis About Authors: Dongchen Zhao, Associate Professor, School of Educational Science, Harbin Normal University, Harbin 150025, Heilongjiang, [China. Email:](China. Email: dongchenzhao@163.com)[ ](China. Email: dongchenzhao@163.com)[dongchenzhao@163.com](China. Email: dongchenzhao@163.com) Correspondence to: Lianghuo Fan, Distinguished Professor, School of Mathematical Sciences & Director, Asian Mathematics Education Center, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200241, China; Visiting Professor, Southampton Education School, University of Southampton, UK. Email: [lhfan@math.ecnu.edu.cn](lhfan@math.ecnu.edu.cn) [Funding:](Funding: This work was financially supported by a startup research grant for the Asian Center for Mathematics)[ This work was financially supported by a startup research grant for the Asian Center for Mathematics](Funding: This work was financially supported by a startup research grant for the Asian Center for Mathematics)[ ](Funding: This work was financially supported by a startup research grant for the Asian Center for Mathematics)[Education](Education), East China Normal University (Project \#: 92900-120215-10514), and the Humanities and Social Science Research Project of the Ministry of Education "Research on Multiple Measurement Instruments of Teachers’ Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK) Based on the Same Conceptual Framework" (Project \#: 18YJA880117). Conflict of Interests: None.

FAQs

What is the main research question of the meta-analysis?

It examines the most important sources for teachers’ knowledge development and how different sources compare in importance across empirical studies.

Which sources are identified as most important for teachers’ knowledge development?

The study finds that in-service experience is more important than preservice education and earlier schooling, especially teacher experience and reflection and exchanges with colleagues.

How do the effectiveness of sources differ between preservice and in-service stages?

During preservice education, educational internships and practicums are the most important sources; other preservice sources show no significant effect, while in-service experience plays a stronger role.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Bulrr