Teachers’ Instructional Planning as a Cognitive and Deliberative Practice: A Systematic Review of Research (2005–2025)

Instructional planning is a central but theoretically dispersed domain of teacher education research. This systematic review synthesizes empirical evidence on instructional planning published between 2005 and 2025, examining the field through the dual lens of teacher cognition and curriculum deliberation. Guided by the PRISMA 2020 statement and a theory-driven design, the review addresses three research questions concerning theoretical traditions, methodological approaches, and knowledge claims characterizing the field. 43 empirical studies were identified across five electronic databases following a staged screening process applied to 987 initially retrieved records. Each included study was coded against the seven constructs of the Teacher Thinking–Instructional Planning (TTIP) Framework. The findings point to three key patterns. First, the field is organized around a strong but relatively narrow cognition-and-decision core, with instructional decision-making (67.4%) and pedagogical reasoning (58.1%) dominating empirical attention. Second, motivational and deliberative dimensions receive limited attention, with motivational orientations (23.3%) and teacher beliefs as a primary focus (4.7%) appearing in relatively few studies. Third, the literature is largely descriptive, with 74.5% of studies producing descriptive or explanatory claims and fewer offering developmental or evaluative evidence. The evidence reviewed here positions instructional planning as a cognitively demanding, deliberative, and contextually shaped professional practice. It cannot be reduced to procedural skill. The TTIP Framework is proposed as an integrated conceptual platform for building more cumulative and explanatory research.