Abstract
The purpose of this research is to evaluate the type and accuracy of the visual representations that the pre-service teachers generate in the pedagogical solution of the word problems in terms of the spatial skill levels of the pre-service teachers. It is designed as a descriptive study in the screening model in accordance with the purpose of the study. The research was carried out in 2017 with 55 pre-service teachers attending the Primary School Teacher Education programme at Ordu University. The data on participants' spatial competence levels were obtained through Purdue Spatial Visualization Test and on the type of visual representations were obtained by coding the data obtained from the solution of a word problem given to the participants according to the criteria specified by the researchers. In the analysis of the data, descriptive analysis and content analysis were applied. As a result of the research, the visual representation types (schematic and pictorial) generated by the pre-service teachers have been determined and it was found that the pre-service teachers with high spatial ability generated correctly structured schematic representations; whereas candidates with low spatial skills usually generated pictorial representations.
Highlights
Solving mathematical problems is challenging for many primary school students
In the mathematical problem-solving process, the visuals used in representing the person and objects in the mind related to the problem have an auxiliary function for understanding and solving the problem
What type of visual representation do the pre-service teachers use for the pedagogical solutions of verbal problems?
Summary
Solving mathematical problems is challenging for many primary school students. In classroom problem solving activities, teachers use various visual representations to facilitate the solution of problems. Representation; according to Gestalt theory, involves understanding how the parts of a problem come together and constructing a new structure that will help in the process of understanding (Mayer, 1992). Mayer (1985) described representing the problem while constructing the conceptual framework of problem solving as one of the four basic steps of the problem-solving process. In the mathematical problem-solving process, the visuals used in representing the person and objects in the mind related to the problem have an auxiliary function for understanding and solving the problem. According to Kahney (1993), the most important determinant of problem solving is how mental or visual representations are made
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