This paper describes how a frame has been used to articulate the intentions of a pre-service chemistry education course to students of that course. The frame, which draws on appropriate knowledge bases for teachers of science, was also used through the teaching of the course as a diagnostic and development tool to assist the learning of these pre-service teachers. However, the success of using such a frame also relies on the use of reflective tools to monitor student learning, such as learning logs and portfolios. While participants in this course were initially reluctant to participate in reflective practices that would help them monitor their own learning and make judgements about what learning they needed to engage in to develop further, by the end of this year long course all participants had changed in their beliefs about the value of reflection. The frames have been instrumental in providing these pre-service chemistry teachers with mechanisms for improving their conceptual knowledge base for the teaching of chemistry. © The Royal Society of Chemistry 2009.
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