Teacher knowledge enhances instruction. Of particular importance for spelling
instruction is literacy-related content teacher knowledge. This knowledge includes
awareness of individual speech sounds, syllables, and morphemes in the English
language. Teachers who possess this knowledge are better able to assess student needs
and design instruction that meets those needs so that students learn to spell well.
In this study, 36 preservice teachers and 38 inservice teachers completed a survey
and three measures. The survey asked teachers to calibrate their knowledge of phonemic
awareness, phonics, and spelling. The measures assessed the teachers’ literacy-related
content knowledge and their ability to use this knowledge to analyze student spelling
errors and choose appropriate instructional activities to meet student needs. Overall, the
preservice teachers were more positive in their assessments of their literacy-related
content knowledge while the inservice teachers demonstrated greater literacy-related
content knowledge. Neither group was adept in analyzing students’ spelling errors
although the inservice teachers were better able to choose appropriate instructional
activities
