Mathematics Teacher Preparation Programs Research Articles

Developing a Guide for a Mathematics Teacher Preparation Program: An Evaluation Study

This study aims to evaluate and develop the mathematics teacher preparation program at the College of Education in Sohag, utilizing a set of national and international standards. The primary objectives include diagnosing the current state of the program, establishing clear goals, standards, and skills for mathematics teacher preparation, and identifying strengths and weaknesses. The evaluation results highlight notable strengths, such as the presence of experienced faculty members with diverse backgrounds and the program's success in fostering positive attitudes towards the teaching profession. Additionally, the availability of various laboratories enhances students' academic and professional readiness. However, the study also identifies important weaknesses, including a traditionalist approach that fails to keep pace with current advancements. The objectives and standards of the program are found to be unclear and general, lacking specificity in the desired skills and competencies for teacher preparation. The study further reveals a lack of comprehensive descriptions and objectives for academic courses, insufficient emphasis on incorporating educational innovations into the curriculum, and a weak connection between the scientific content of the program and practical teaching applications. Additionally, the evaluation methods employed in the current program are deemed in need of development and diversification, as they primarily focus on rote memorization rather than measuring deeper understanding and application of knowledge. The creation of a comprehensive guide for the "Mathematics Teacher Preparation Program" underscores the crucial role of teachers as fundamental elements in the educational process. The guide has been meticulously developed using scientific methods, aiming to address a gap in the internal regulations of the College of Education in Sohag. It serves as a valuable resource for all individuals involved in the preparation of Mathematics Division students at the college, particularly those who will graduate and embark on careers as mathematics teachers. The guide presents the methodological components of mathematics teacher preparation in a manner that reflects systemic thinking, ensuring a cohesive and well-rounded approach to training future educators in the field of mathematics

The Role of Teaching and Learning Theories in Preparing Student Teachers to Teach Mathematics and Enhancing Learners' Readiness to Learn: A Case Study of Bia Lamplighter College of Education in Ghana

Aim: The study aimed to investigate the role of teaching and learning theories in preparing teachers to teach mathematics and in enhancing students' readiness to learn. Specifically, the study explored the application of constructivist and pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) theories in a teacher preparation program and in classroom instruction.
 Study Design: The study employed a case study design and involved pre-service teachers and their students in a mathematics classroom. Data was collected through interviews, observations, and document analysis.
 Methodology: The study employed a case study design to investigate the application of constructivist and PCK theories in a teacher preparation program and in classroom instruction. The study involved pre-service teachers and their students in a mathematics classroom. A purposive sampling technique was used to select ten (10) final year student teachers who can provide rich and detailed information about their readiness to teach and learn mathematics, as well as their understanding and application of learning and teaching theories. Also, one hundred (100) students were purposively selected for the study. Data was collected through interviews, observations, and document analysis and was analyzed using thematic analysis.
 Results: The findings revealed that pre-service teachers who were exposed to constructivist and PCK-based instruction in their teacher preparation program were better equipped to design and deliver mathematics lessons that promote active learning and deep understanding of mathematical concepts. Moreover, students who were taught in a constructivist and PCK-based learning environment demonstrated higher levels of readiness to learn mathematics. The study provides insights into the effectiveness of using learning and teaching theories in mathematics education and highlights the importance of incorporating these theories in teacher preparation programs.
 Conclusions: Based on the findings and analysis of this study, it can be concluded that the application of constructivist and PCK-based instruction in mathematics teacher preparation programs has a positive impact on pre-service teachers' readiness to teach mathematics.
 To successfully incorporate constructivist and PCK-based instruction in mathematics teacher preparation programs, it is important to provide adequate support and training for instructors and to engage in ongoing evaluation and refinement of these programs. By doing so, we can help to ensure that future mathematics teachers are prepared to effectively facilitate learning and promote mathematical understanding in their classrooms.

Investigation of the effect of computer-supported instruction on students’ achievement on optimization problems

ABSTRACT This study aimed to investigate the relative effectiveness of a computer-supported teaching sequence in solving optimization problems in calculus compared to a traditional teaching approach. The participants in the study were 46 first-year prospective mathematics teachers studying in two different classes of a four-year elementary mathematics teacher preparation program. The two classes were randomly assigned as experimental and control groups. The teaching of the content in the control group took place as direct lecturing, whereas in the experimental group, an instructional intervention was carried out. To compare the performance of the two groups in solving optimization problems, the students were asked to solve a problem, and a scoring rubric was used to quantify their success. In order to determine whether there was a difference between the groups in terms of student performance, a Mann–Whitney U test was performed on the scores. The results indicated a significant difference in favour of the experimental group. It was concluded that the teaching sequence adopted in the experimental group better served the students in interpreting the optimization function in terms of the quantities given in the problem scenario.

A Phenomenographic Investigation of Middle School Pre-service Mathematics Teachers' Conceptions of Proof

The capability of pre-service teachers to teach mathematical reasoning depends on the quality of their proof conceptions. This qualitative study focuses proof conceptions of middle school pre-service mathematics teachers. To this end, this study employed a phenomenographic approach to identify the variation in pre-service teachers’ experience of proof. Analysis of semi-structured interviews revealed five qualitatively different categories: proof is (a) a way of problem-solving, (b) a means for understanding, (c) explaining thinking in a convincing way, d) validating conjectures using logical arguments, and (e) a means for discovery of mathematics. This study contributes to the pedagogical knowledge about a framework of proof conceptions. Results may be used to promote the quality of the mathematics teacher preparation programs.

Discussing the Conditional Probability from a Cognitive Psychological Perspective

Probability signifies the most obscure and the least achievable content among other mathematics areas; particularly, the conditional probability concept that should not be left behind any standard course of probability from primary to university level. Moreover, understanding the conditional probability becomes more serious when the discussion fits into the field of teacher education, wherein the prospective mathematics teachers need not only to learn it but also to promote their pupils’ conditional probability reasoning. From this aspect, the current study aims at exploring the prospective mathematics teachers’ conditional probability reasoning from a cognitive psychological perspective that focuses on how their minds work. Accordingly, the generic inductive approach has been employed. Hence, a purposive sample of the university students who study in a four-year mathematics teacher preparation program has been selected. After analyzing the school curriculum of probability, an authentic conditional probability situation has been utilized. Following this, the students’ interpretations have been translated, coded, and categorized using NVivo software. As a result, the generalizer (58.8%), conservative (11.8%), correlational (23.5%), and the rational thinker (5.9%) have been defined as the primary models of conditional probability reasoning. Furthermore, while the generalizer and conservative thinkers both share the anchoring and adjustment bias, the illusion of validity has been operated by only the conservatives. Besides, the one-step, availability, causality, and gambler fallacy, were the correlational thinkers' assigned biases. On the other side, the rational thinkers have reached a high level of contextual knowledge, with understanding the idea of sample space reduction.

Development of Mathematics Teacher’s Preparation Programs in the Light of STEM Education

The study aimed to reveal the reality of keeping pace with the preparation programs of mathematics teachers to the requirements of STEM education and develop a suggested scenario for the development of mathematics teacher preparation programs in the light of the requirements of STEM. To this end, the analytical descriptive method was conducted, and the researcher built a list of requirements in the light of STEM education which should be included in the programs of preparation of mathematics teachers. The questionnaire was used as a data collection tool. The study sample consisted of (47) faculty members in the preparation programs of mathematics teachers in Saudi universities.The main findings were as follows: (1) to build a list of STEM education requirements that should be included in the math teacher preparation programs, (2) the availability of professional competence of pre-service mathematics teachers in the light of the STEM was weak (M=1.49, 50%), (3) the commitment of mathematics students-teachers to improve the performance of learners with a medium means of 2.19, and 73%, (4) the use of mathematics students-teachers established the foundations of highly systematic thinking, is high, with means an average of 2.37 and 79%, and (5) the interaction of mathematics students-teachers in the educational community is high, with means of 2.46, and 82%. On the basis of these results, a proposed development of programs for the preparation of mathematics teachers in Saudi universities was developed.

The Development of TPSM for Future Mathematics Candidates in SQU

Mathematics Teacher Preparation Programs increasingly include a focus on the use of technology for teaching school mathematics. A key feature in this approach to prepare teachers to teach mathematics with technology is to integrally develop teachers’ TPSM. Teachers need to understand that critical instructional decisions they make are grounded in their understandings of each domain (technology, pedagogy, and School Mathematics) and influenced by their beliefs and conceptions. The main professional course in (SQU: Sultan Qaboos University) mathematics teachers program focus on the potential integration of three domains TPSM to prepare new teachers.

An Innovative STEM Education Framework for a Changing Educational Landscape

This article describes features of NAUTeach, a secondary mathematics teacher preparation program that is modeled onthe UTeach program at the University of Texas-Austin. NAUTeach is a research-based STEM program that developsthe next generation of mathematics and science teachers by engaging them in rigorous content and methodologycoursework specifically developed to provide a broad, cross-curricular framework of innovativeinstruction. NAUTeach has been specifically designed to serve the needs of preservice mathematics and scienceteachers as they embark on teaching a new generation of students in an ever changing world. The NAUTeachprogram focuses on the development of inquiry-based instructional methods, reflective practice, and peercollaboration through a carefully sequenced series of courses that consistently promote early and frequent field workand a learner-centered focus of teaching and learning. Though the NAUTeach program is a blended mathematics andscience teacher preparation program, this article will focus on the preparation of secondary mathematics teachers bydescribing the cross-curricular (mathematics & science) methodological sequence of courses, along with themathematics-specific pedagogical courses, that preservice mathematics teacher candidates take as part of this program.Connections between the NAUTeach program and guidelines for the content and pedagogical preparation of teacherswill be made with specific attention paid to the development of reflective, innovative, flexible, and reform-orientedmathematics teachers.

Factors that influence secondary mathematics teachers' integration of technology in mathematics lessons

While many studies describe the use of technology in the mathematics classroom, few explore the factors that influence teacher decisions around its use. The participants in this study were 21 early career secondary mathematics teachers who had completed an undergraduate mathematics teacher preparation program in the USA with a strong emphasis on the use of technology to teach mathematics. In this qualitative study, interview data were collected and analyzed with attention toward why teachers choose to use technology to teach mathematics, what tools they chose to use and why, as well as the general factors they consider when selecting particular technology tools. Findings indicate that one of the most important factors when deciding whether to use technology was how well it aligned with the goals of a lesson. The range of technology used spanned mathematical action tools, collaboration tools, assessment tools, and communication tools. When selecting particular tools teachers most heavily considered ease of use for both themselves and their students. These findings suggest that when considering how to infuse technology into teacher education programs we suggest that it is important to focus more broadly on types of tools, ways teachers can position them, and how particular activities align with specific mathematics learning objectives.

فاعلیة برنامج مقترح قائم على استراتیجیة الرحلات المعرفیة عبر الویب فی تنمیة مهارات الطلاب لاستیفاء معاییر اعتماد برنامج إعداد معلم الریاضیات بکلیات التربیة

هدف البحث الحالي إلى استقصاء فاعلية برنامج مقترح قائم على استراتيجية الرحلات المعرفية عبر الويب في تنمية مهارات الطلاب لاستيفاء معايير اعتماد برنامج إعداد معلم الرياضيات بکليات التربية، ومن ثم تم الاطلاع على الأدبيات التربوية والدراسات السابقة المرتبطة بمجالات البحث الرئيسية وهي معايير اعتماد برنامج إعداد معلم الرياضيات بکلية التربية وإجراءات استراتيجية الرحلات المعرفية عبر الويب، وبالتالي تم تصميم البرنامج المقترح واشتقاق أهدافه وإعداد أدوات البحث وتمثلت في اختبار الجوانب المعرفية وبطاقة تقييم الجوانب الأدائية (ملفات الإنجاز الالکترونية) لمهارات جودة البرنامج التعليمي لدى طلاب شعبة الرياضيات بکلية التربية. وتم اختيار المنهجين الوصفي وشبه التجريبي وتصميم المجموعة الواحدة ذات التطبيق القبلي البعدي والبعدي محکي المرجع، وتکونت المجموعة التجريبية من (60) طالبا ممثلين لجميع فرق شعبة عام رياضيات بکلية التربية جامعة مدينة السادات، وأظهرت نتائج البحث تحسن مهارات طلاب مجموعة البحث -الجوانب المعرفية والأدائية- المرتبطة بمعايير جودة البرنامج التعليمي في التطبيق البعدي وتجاوزها للقيمة المرجعية (مستوى الاستيفاء) المحددة من الهيئة القومية لضمان جودة التعليم والاعتماد، ومن ثم أوصى البحث بتعميم تجربته ومواده وأدواته على کافة برامج إعداد معلم الرياضيات بکليات التربية بالجامعات المصرية. The current research aimed to investigate the effectiveness of a proposed WebQuest strategy-based program in developing students' skills to meet accreditation criteria for mathematics teacher preparation Program in faculties of education. There for the educational literature and previous studies related to the main fields of research were examined; these areas are accreditation criteria for mathematics teacher preparation program in the faculty of education and WebQuest strategy procedures. In addition, the proposed program was designed and its objectives were derived and the preparation of the research tools. Which consisted in the test of the cognitive aspects and the performance evaluation card (E-Portfolios) for quality skills of the educational program for students of the mathematics department, faculty of education. The descriptive and semi-experimental methods and the design of the one group with the pre-post test and reference value post test were chosen. The experimental group consisted of (60) students representing all the stages of general mathematics section students in the faculty of education, Sadat City University, The research results showed that the students' skills in research group (cognitive and performance aspects) related to quality standards of educational program improved and beyond the reference value (interpolation level) specified by national authority for quality assurance and accreditation of education. There for the research recommended disseminating his experience and materials and tools to all programs of mathematics teacher preparation in faculties of education in Egyptian universities.

Increasing Physics Teacher Production by Replicating the UTeach Preparation Model and Awarding Noyce Scholarships

In order to improve the production of physics teachers, and high school science teachers in general, at The University of Texas at Arlington, the authors obtained grant funding to offer National Science Foundation Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarships and to support a replication of the successful UTeach science and mathematics teacher preparation program. The Noyce grant was obtained first, and a modest increase in science teacher production was seen. The UTeach replication has been implemented on a four-year schedule, culminating in the establishment of a new student teaching program in January 2014. The combination of a UTeach replication and availability of Noyce Scholarships has UT Arlington poised to improve its science teacher production by an order of magnitude.

واقع توظیف تقنیات التعلم الإلکترونی فی برنامج إعداد معلمات الریاضیات بجامعة الملک خالد بالمملکة العربیة السعودیة

واقع توظیف تقنیات التعلم الإلکترونی فی برنامج إعداد معلمات الریاضیات بجامعة الملک خالد بالمملکة العربیة السعودیة

Family Mathematics Nights: An Opportunity to Improve Preservice Teachers' Understanding of Parents' Roles and Expectations

Providing preservice teachers with opportunities to engage with parents and begin to see them as collaborators in their children's education is a persistent challenge in mathematics methods courses and teacher preparation programs more broadly. We describe the use of family mathematics nights as a model for engaging parents and preservice teachers. These events helped preservice teachers feel more comfortable in working with parents, while also giving them a friendly space for learning more about parents, the ways they work with their children, and activities they do with their children. Incorporating surveys about parents' needs and suggestions for preservice teachers allowed us to use the results as a catalyst for fostering discussions around parent engagement later in the methods course.

الاستیعاب المفاهیمی للتحویلات الهندسیة لدى الطلاب معلمی الریاضیات باللغة الانجلیزیة فی کلیة التربیة-جامعة الإسکندریة (دراسة تقییمیة)

تؤکد التوجهات الحديثة في برامج إعداد المعلم بصفة عامة، ومعلم الرياضيات بصفة خاصة أهمية تنمية الاستيعاب المفاهيمي للرياضيات، وموضوعاتها المختلفة، ومن بينها الموضوعات الهندسية کالتحويلات الهندسية؛ لدعم تنمية فهم الطلاب وتعلمهم لها. وبمراجعة مقررات برامج إعداد معلم الرياضيات بکلية التربية - جامعة الإسکندرية لم نجد ترجمة حقيقية لهذه التوجهات؛ لذا حاول البحث الحالي الوقوف على مستوى الاستيعاب المفاهيمي للتحويلات الهندسية لدى الطلاب معلمي الرياضيات باللغة الإنجليزية. ولتحقيق أهداف البحث الحالي استعين بمجموعة من الأدوات؛ هي: اختبار الاستيعاب المفاهيمي للتحويلات الهندسية (الجانب المعرفي)، واستمارة مقابلة مرتبطة به يهدفان إلي تعرف مستوى الاستيعاب المفاهيمي لدي الطلاب معلمي الرياضيات باللغة الانجليزية (الجانب المعرفي – المصطلحات والمفاهيم)، بالإضافة إلى اختبار الاستيعاب المفاهيمي للتحويلات الهندسية (الجانب الأدائي) واستمارة مقابلة مرتبطة به يهدفان إلي تعرف مستوى الاستيعاب المفاهيمي لدي الطلاب معلمي الرياضيات باللغة الانجليزية (الجانب الأدائي – المهارات والتطبيقات). وقد أجري البحث على الطلاب معلمي الرياضيات باللغة الإنجليزية المقيدين بالفرقة الثالثة شعبة رياضيات إنجليزي في کلية التربية – جامعة الاسکندرية وقد بلغ عددهم (9) طلاب. وقد أسفرت نتائج البحث عن تدني مستوي الاستيعاب المفاهيمي لدي الطلاب معلمي الرياضيات باللغة الإنجليزية (الجانب المعرفي، والجانب الأدائي) وذلک بالنسبة مفاهيم التحويلات الهندسية موضوع البحث (مقدمة في التحويلات الهندسية – الانعکاس – الانتقال – الدوران – التمدد). وقد أسفر البحث عن مجموعة من التوصيات والمقترحات في إطار الاهتمام بتنمية الاستيعاب المفاهيمي لمعلم الرياضيات لموضوعات الرياضيات بعامة والتحويلات الهندسية بخاصة، کما اقترح البحث عددا من البحوث المقترحة في المجالات ذات الصلة. The new trends in teacher preparation generally and mathematics teacher specifically concerning the importance of developing teacher conceptual understanding of mathematics and its branches, especially geometrical transformation. That is for support student’s understanding mathematics and learning it. Reviewing the mathematics teacher preparation program in Faculty of Education (FOE)– Alexandria University, revealed that there is no evidence for achieving these trends. So, the current research studied the level of transformation conceptual understanding for 9 pre-service english mathematics teacher in the third year in FOE. The research tried to answer the main question: What is the transformations conceptual understanding level for pre-service English mathematics teacher? For achieving the research goals, the following instruments were developed: - Transformations conceptual understanding test (terminology and concepts check) and related interview which aimed to recognize transformations conceptual understanding level (terminology and concepts check) for pre-service English mathematics teacher; and - Transformations conceptual understanding test (skills and applications check) and related interview which aimed to recognize transformations conceptual understanding level (skills and applications check) for pre-service English mathematics teacher. Results of the research showed low level of transformations conceptual understanding (concepts and skills check) among pre-service English mathematics teacher that is for transformation introduction, reflection, translation, rotation, and dilation. The current research presented some suggestions and recommendation according to these results. Moreover, some research ideas related to the current research goals were suggested.

Using a Pedagogical Content Knowledge Assessment to Inform a Middle Grades Mathematics Teacher Preparation Program

This study provided a springboard for teacher preparation evaluation studies by examining what content and pedagogical content knowledge mathematics pre-service teachers demonstrated in the 4 – 8 mathematics teacher preparation program at an urban research university. Twenty nine pre-service students participated in an assessment called Diagnostic Mathematics Assessments for Middle School Teachers. The study found that pre-service teachers displayed the highest scores for Memorized/Factual Knowledge, followed by Conceptual Understanding, Reasoning/Problem Solving, and Pedagogical Content Knowledge. Pre-service teachers had higher Memorized/Factual Knowledge than Pedagogical Content Knowledge. The pre-service teachers’ overall content knowledge was not strong, and the two lowest-performing content knowledge areas were Geometry/Measurement and Probability/Statistics. In conclusion, the picture emerging from this study was of pre-service teachers demonstrating low knowledge of content and pedagogy, thereby placing the program in difficulty of building a pedagogical prowess upon the mathematical content.

Doceamus: Reconsidering the Mathematics Preparation of Pre-service Secondary Mathematics Teachers

mathematics teachers. Hodgson [5] noted that, within such programs, pre-service secondary mathematics teachers “have no explicit occasion for making connections with the mathematical topics for which they will be responsible in school, nor of looking at those topics from an advanced point of view” (p. 509). He endorsed the inclusion of undergraduate coursework that would help preservice teachers develop “deep conceptual understanding of the school mathematics content” (p. 512). In 2001 the Conference Board of the Mathematical Sciences (CBMS) [3] recommended that pre-service secondary mathematics teachers complete “a 6-hour capstone course connecting their college mathematics courses with high school mathematics” (p. 8). Recently, the CBMS has released an updated version of these recommendations [4] and, rather than suggesting a specific capstone course, now proposes that pre-service secondary mathematics teachers complete the equivalent of a mathematics major “that includes three courses with a primary focus on high school mathematics from an advanced viewpoint” (p. 18). The call for pre-service secondary mathematics Secondary mathematics teacher preparation programs typically require pre-service teachers to complete an undergraduate degree in mathematics, or the equivalent [1, 3], along with education coursework and some type of field experience. There has been substantial discussion in the mathematics education community about the mathematics coursework required of pre-service secondary mathematics teachers. Many have questioned the value of traditional undergraduate mathematics programs for future high school Reconsidering the Mathematics Preparation of Pre-service Secondary Mathematics Teachers

The Content-Focused Methods Course: A Model for Integrating Pedagogy and Mathematics Content

In the majority of secondary mathematics teacher preparation programs, the work of learning mathematics and the work of learning to teach mathematics are separated, leaving open the question of when and how teachers integrate their knowledge of content and pedagogy. We present a model for a content-focused methods course, which systematically develops a slice of mathematics content in the context of typical methods course activities. Three design principles are posited that undergird the design of such a course, addressing the nature of the mathematics content, the sequencing and design of activities, and the ways in which the course addresses the needs of diverse learners. Data from an instantiation of one such course is presented to illustrate the ways in which the course design framed teachers' opportunities to learn about both content and pedagogy.

Number Theory and the Queen of Mathematics

Geometry is an integral component of secondary mathematics curriculum. From my experience in a mathematics teacher preparation program, I have seen a real push to connect geometry to other areas of mathematics. Secondary geometry can often be presented without clear or any connections to other areas of mathematics. One main purpose of this paper is to explore geometry and its rightful connection to other areas of mathematics, specifically number theory. Such strong emphasis is placed on drawing connections to number theory because of its intrinsic value in enhancing understanding of mathematical concepts. Learning number theory has positive ramifications for students, making the transition from arithmetic to an introduction to algebra. It helps “students develop better understandings of the abstract conceptual structure of whole numbers and integers,” and it has important algebraic characteristics, which relate to variables and mathematical reasoning (Campbell & Zazkis, 2006, p.28). Another purpose of this paper is to explore not only number theory as it relates to geometry, but also the basic history of number theory. Number theory has a beauty, accessibility, history, formal and cognitive nature, and intrinsic merits all to its own (Campbell & Zazkis, 2006, p. 13). For the sake of all the intrigue of number theory, I have a desire to learn more about it to fuel my own pursuit of a better understanding of effectively teaching mathematics, but also to use it to encourage and engage students in their personal pursuit of mathematical understanding.

History of mathematics: illuminating understanding of school mathematics concepts for prospective mathematics teachers

The use of the history of mathematics in teaching has long been considered a tool for enriching students’ mathematical learning. However, in the USA few, if any, research efforts have investigated how the study of history of mathematics contributes to a person's mathematical knowledge for teaching. In this article, I present the results of research conducted over four semesters in which I sought to characterize what prospective mathematics teachers (PMTs) understand about the topics that they will be called upon to teach in the future and how that teaching might include an historical component. In particular, I focus on how the study and application of the history of solving quadratic equations illuminates what PMTs know (or do not know) about this essential secondary school algebraic topic. Additionally, I discuss how the results signal important considerations for mathematics teacher preparation programs with regard to connecting PMTs' mathematical and pedagogical knowledge, and their ability to engage in historical perspectives to improve their own and their future students' understanding of solving quadratic equations.

A capstone mathematics course for prospective secondary mathematics teachers

This article describes an innovative capstone mathematics course that links college mathematics with school mathematics and pedagogy. It describes how college juniors in a secondary mathematics teacher preparation program engage in leadership experiences that enable them to learn mathematics for teaching while developing student-centered pedagogical and assessment strategies. Examples show how students teach the class, complemented by excerpts from student journals containing students’ perceptions of their learning. Preliminary research indicates the effectiveness of this course for preparing future mathematics teachers.