What do pre-service and mentor teachers learn from collaborative professional development on socioscientific issues?

The aim of this study is to investigate the outcomes of a professional development program on socioscientific issues (SSI) to enhance pre-service and mentor teachers' engagement with SSI supported by technology-supported teaching. It aims to explore the learning outcomes for both groups and the influence of their perspectives on science education on these outcomes. The method involves collaborative SSI material development and implementation in classrooms. The study involved 11 senior (10 female; 1 male) pre-service biology teachers and four biology teachers who mentored them in schools during their Teaching Practice courses. The data was collected through semi-structured interviews, reflective diaries, and meeting recordings and were analyzed using a thematic analysis approach. The findings show that pre-service teachers gained multidimensional reasoning, technology integration skills, and ethical and moral reasoning abilities, with gains influenced by their science teaching perspectives. Mentor teachers with progressive views in science teaching understanding had greater benefits, such as improved SSI understanding and student engagement techniques, than those with traditional views.